t 



mm 



MONET*:.. 
PRINTING 
BU^INE^J 

By R4UL Nathan 




LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. 

('!ia|) Copyright No 

,Slielf -2: 2-1^/5- 

: .:• :7Zi 7 

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 



\ 



I 



I 



How TO Make Money in 
THE Printing Business. 



A Book for Master Printers 

WHO REALIZE THAT THERE IS A PRACTICAL SIDE TO THE 

ART, AND WHO DESIRE TO KNOW THE SUREST 

METHODS OF MAKING PROFITS. 

BY 

PAUL NATHAN 

OF THE 

LOTUS PRESS. 



WITH CONTRIBUTIONS FROM MANY OF THE LEADING PRINTERS 
OF THE UNITED STATES. 



NEW YORK : 

THE LOTUS PRESS. 



1900. 



7121 



<Q. 



Libr»ry of Conn !•«*« 

Twt Copies Recpivpo 
JUN 16 1900 

Ct^yrlght entry 

'^^ ^mm COPY. 

2ni Copy D»Hv»r«d U 

ORDER DIVISION 
JAN 3 1901 



Coi'YRlGHT 1900 
BY 

Paul Nathan. 



^ 



•>■ 



ii>7 



PREFACE 



There are in existence about two thousand different 
books pertaining to printing and typography, and per- 
haps as many more that are partly devoted to these 
subjects. Of this hirge number, only a bare half dozen 
treat of the business management of a printing office, 
and its successful operation for the purpose of yielding 
that profit for which men do business. In the half 
dozen there is not a total of a hundred pages directed 
toward the theme of the present work. It seems to 
me that this is sufficient excuse for bringing this book 
before the printing trade. For years the cry has gone 
up from the followers of Guttenberg that there is no 
money in the printing business, that competition takes 
all the margin out of the work, and that the cost for 
renewal of plants has eaten up the profits. 

Personally, I have found that the printing business 
yielded satisfiictory profits, as much as one could expect 
in a strictly competitive business, and in every city there 
are men who have made money in this trade; yet the 
diversity of opinion as to profitable methods, and the 
confusion of ideas as to the cost of producing printing, 
has led me to the conclusion that there is imperative 
need of an exchange of views for the better education of 
the trade. There are plenty of books on the history of 
the art, and a large number exhibiting ornamental print- 
ing and the methods of its production, but the practi- 
cal financial side has been very much neglected. In 



PREFACE. 

this book, I have gathered together the impressions of 
some of the leading minds in the trade as to the re- 
quisites to the profitable management of the printery. 
With the benefit of such competent advice, I feel that it 
is not presumptuous to undertake to lay down the busi- 
ness rules on which a printing office must be managed 
in order to make money for its proprietors. 

In that excellent work, Theodore L. De Vinne's 
*' Printers' Price List, " I took my first lessons in con- 
ducting a printery for profit. Owing to the fact that 
conditions and machinery have changed very largely, 
the figures in his book are no longer applicable, and it 
has long been out of print. Other works relating to 
the cost of printing have been laid aside for similar 
reasons. It has been deemed best to include in this 
book very few figures, and to avoid the quotation of 
prices, but to endeavor to lay down the foundation 
principles on which prices should be based. In this 
way the book may serve as a guide for many years; 
as the essentials to making a profit do not change as 
quickly as do the prices. 

Where so little has been written upon a subject, it 
is impossible for an author to borrow much from the 
experience of those who have gone before. I have 
been obliged to lay out this work on original lines, and 
have combined with my own experience the wisdom of 
representative men in the trade. In the hope that 
these pages will be read with both mental and finan- 
cial profit by master printers, and that the thoughts 
herein spread forth may live to add to the general pros- 
perity of the craft, 1 subscribe myself. 

Yours sincerely, 

Nkw York City, 1900. PAUL NATHAN. 



TO 

^bcoOore Uow 2)e IDlnne, 

THE DEAN OF AMERICAN PRINTERS, 

WHO GAVE ME MY FIRST LESSONS 
IN THE MAKING OF PRICES, 

THIS BOOK IS APPRECIATIVELY DEDICATED. 





CONTENTS. 


PAGE 


CHAPTER 




I. 


The Printer AS A Business Man . . ... i 


II. 


Starting an Office . . , . 




II 


III. 


What Class of Customers to Seek 






21 


IV. 


How TO Develop Business 






29 


V. 


Writing Advertising Matter, etc. 






36 


VI. 


Taking Orders .... 






42 


VII. 


Advertising 






50 


VIII. 


Hov^ TO Talk to Customers 






7> 


IX. 


The Cost of Producing Printing 






79 


X. 


Estimating . . . 






91 


XI. 


Acquiring Money .... 






109 


XII. 


Price Cutting 






114 


xm. 


Competitors 






124 


XIV. 


Profit, and How it Should be Figured 






>34 


XV. 


Buying 






'43 


XVI. 


Doing Good Printing 






•49 


XVII. 


The Composing-room 






156 


XVIII. 


The Pressroom ..... 






169 


XIX. 


The Business Office .... 






181 


XX. 


Bookkeeping 






190 


XXI. 


Management of Employees 






201 


XXII. 


The Employee's Opportunity 






211 


XXIII. 


Danger in Side Ventures 






218 


XXIV. 


Systematic Saving .... 






225 


XXV. 


Partnerships 






232 


XXVI. 


Leakages . 






242 


XXVII. 


Keeping Up With the Times 






250 


XXVIII. 


Suggestions From Others : 
Theodore L. De Vinne 
Carl Schraubstadter 
Wm. J. Berkowitz 
J. Clyde Oswald 
C. S. Morehouse 
Chas. H. Cochrane 
Henry L. Biillen 
Nathan Billstein 
Jno. W. Campsie 
Sigmund Ullman 






• 257 
260 
264 
266 
268 
269 
270 
272 
273 
. 276 


XXIX. 


The Relation of Paper-Feeding Machines 
IN THE Pressroom 


to P 


KOFIT 


279 


XXX. 


Timely Hints 

J. Cliff Dando .... 
F. L. Montague 
Henry A. Wise Wood 






301 
302 
302 
306 



Contents — Continued. 



The American Printer 

Advance in Typesetting Machinery 

Paper Joggers and Alarm Counters 

How Do You Buy Your Inks 

Perfection Wire Stitchers 

Superiority in Types 

The Best in Rollers is the Cheapest 

Superior Excellence in Platen Presswork 

Buying of Printing Inks ..... 

Wesel Specialties for Better-Class Printing Office 

Money Saving Devices 

A Word About Printing Inks .... 

Tympalyn Saves Make-Ready .... 

Scott Presses are Money-Makers 

The Benedict Imprint Attests Excellence in Plates 

Machinery for Engravers .... 

Using Illustrations to Increase Printers' Profits 

The Merganthaler Linotype .... 

An Expert Opinion Regarding " Century" Presses 

Making a Profit on Small Work 

The Golding Jobber ..... 

Why Not Make Money by Buying a Press That W 

Lifetime ? 
w. a. nosworthy 
The Huber 
J. E. LiNDE Paper Co. 
Duplex Printing Press Co. 
Inland Type Foundry 
Typothet/e and Platemaker 
Henry Lindenmyer & Sons 



ILL Last a 



PAGE 

309 
312 
316 
317 
3'9 
320 
321 
322 
324 
325 
329 
330 
33' 

339 
343 
344 
350 
358 
362 
j66 

37» 
376 

377 
378 
379 
380 
381 
382 



CHAPTFR I. 

THE PRINTER AS A BUSINESS MAN. 

The printer who embarks in business is supposed to 
have learned his trade thoroughly;*^nd as a rule he is a 
superior workman, who by indusuy and economy has 
been able to save enough to becon>eS^in employer. He 
is seldom a business man, because his Ti'iiining has been 
in an entirelv different direction. The youMg^printer who 
thinks that he can run a printing office of his own suc- 
cessfullv because he knows how to do good printing has 
a great deal to learn, and quite as much to unlearn. The 
education of the composing room and of the pressroom 
is not the sort of education that tits a man for dealing with 
customers, making prices, buving stock and machinery, 
contesting with shrewd people and schemers, and 
looking after the scores of things that are as important as 
the actual printing that is done. On the contrary, such 
education as the printer receives in the printery often 
largely untits him for taking charge of the business end, 
and this is a prominent reason why so many master 
printers fail to make money and simplv worry along, 
living from hand to mouth, scrambling to meet notes, 
never attaining a competency, and perhaps eventually 
going back to the case or to the press. 

A false notion as to prices and profits usually rests in 
the mind of the printer who is thinking of starting in 
business. He has time and again seen the prices given 



2 THE PRINTER AS A BUSINESS MAN. 

on work that he has done, and noted that the proprietor 
charged, say $12, for work that he, the workman, per- 
formed for $4 or $5, and he has assumed that almost all 
the difference went into the proprietor's pocket, and that 
if he started a printery he could take such work at a dollar 
or two less, and yet earn one-half more than as an em- 
ployee. With printing enough to keep five or six men 
busy he has calculated that he can pocket the wages of 
two men or more. This would-be proprietor seldom, 
figures on dull times, but always sees the rosy side, and 
thinks that his presses will never be idle, or his customers 
fail to pay their bills. This is not at all an overdrawn 
case. It is the most usual condition of mind and knowl- 
edge of the young men who start in the printing business 
for themselves. It is a dangerous state of mind because 
it is an ignorant one that wots not of its ignorance. 

Printers are above the average in intelligence and 
education, but they are commonly poor business men. 
If beginners in business had any proper conception of 
their ignorance of business methods, of what utter chil- 
dren they are in the business world, the danger would 
not be so great, for they would pitch in and learn the 
conditions before they embarked in business. If a printer 
were going to open a dry goods store or a grocery, a shoe 
store or a clothing house, he would understand that he 
must know something of business management or expect 
to fail; but, when he goes into the printing business, 
because he knows the trade, he naturally thinks that he 
knows it all, when he is often but a babbling ignoramus 
in business matters and commercial negotiations. It is a 
hard thing to make others realize that they know little or 
nothing of a particular thing, yet the successful men in 
the printing trade know that only men who are first 



THE PRINTER AS A BUSINESS MAN. 3 

made conscious of their ignorance as to business methods 
can be taught. It is a hard road to success, and there is 
a deal to be learned, and even the leaders in successful 
business are always finding that some fellow has got 
ahead of them and developed new means of progress that 
they had failed to recognize. How necessary it is, then, 
for the novice in the printing business to equip himself 
with knowledge, gleaned from the experience of those 
who have gone before! 

Let none be offended at the general assumption that 
beginners in the printing business, and many who are 
not beginners, are ignorant. It is not that they are uned- 
ucated or uninformed generally, or that they are deficient 
in the mechanical part of printing, but simply that they 
are unfamiliar with what are popularly termed business 
methods. 

The dry goods man, the grocer, the hatter, etc., each 
and all sell articles that they do not make, and they 
charge the public from twenty-five to fifty per cent, 
advance upon the goods they handle, and more often 
fifty than twenty-five. That percentage, whatever it is, 
must pay all the expenses, losses, salary and profit. It is 
a simple proposition, concerning which the storekeeper 
cannot readily be misled. If one of these merchants buys, 
say, $10,000 worth of stock in a year, incurs $3,000 of 
expenses, sells $15,000 worth, and has $1,000 in goods 
on hand as dead stock, he has simply earned a salary of 
$2,000, and his profit will be what he can realize on the 
dead stock. He has no difficulty in knowing the cost 
price of his goods, and little in calculating the percentage 
he must add. To achieve the result figured out above he 
has to collect a dollar for every sixty cents worth of goods 
sold, and, as some customers do not pay, and as some 



4 THE PRINTER AS A BUSINESS MAN. 

goods have to be sold close to catch custom, he has been 
obliged to sell most of his goods at just double the cost 
price. It is broadly true, in a great many lines of business, 
that the selling price must be double the manufacturing 
cost to yield an adequate return to the merchant. 

The printer in business knows these facts in a general 
way, but he is too often led astray by supposing that 
when he pays a workman $s for the time on a job and 
collects $10 from the customer, that he is doing as well as 
the storekeeper. This is a complete fallacy, and the lack 
of appreciation of this difference has sent many and many 
a printer into bankruptcy. When the workman's time 
on a job foots up $5, it will be found that the contingent 
expenses, which are not paid for directly, usually average 
more than another $5, so that the cost to the printer- 
proprietor is apt to be about $11, and the selling price, 
on the same basis as the storekeeper does business, 
requires to be somewhere between $13 and $20. This is 
gone into fully and demonstrated in the chapter on " The 
Cost of Producing Printing," and the reader who requires 
proof of the assertion will find plenty of it there to satisfy 
him. 

To learn how to be a good business man requires of 
the printer that he first learn exactly what it costs him to 
turn out his work. He must then see to it that he secures 
interest on his capital, a salary, a margin for contingencies, 
and a final profit above all; otherwise he might better be 
out of business, and in emplovment. He must also learn 
all the nice methods of handling men and getting them 
to pay a fair price, as well as how to buy his own 
goods at bottom figures. Salesmen who deal with 
printers have been known to say that they are the easiest 
class of men to overcharge: that they are prone to believe 



THE PRINTER AS A BUSINESS MAN. ^ 

everything that they are told, and to fail to see the tricks 
of the men who are unloading upon them with no 
thought other than to get a price for the goods; that they 
seldom discount their bills, even when there is one per 
cent, a month (or 12 per cent, a year) in so doing, which 
is perhaps a higher percentage than they make on the 
printing that they do. 

The printer going into business must learn that there 
are many sharpers in the world, and he must learn to dis- 
tinguish them or he will fall by the way. He must learn 
that his principal business is no longer to print a good 
job and admire it, but to buy close and manage without 
waste, and sell for all that he can get. And right here 
there is room for a sermon : How many printers we see 
spending half their time tlguring how cheaply they can 
print this or that job, whereas their true object in busi- 
ness is not to see how cheaply they can do work, but 
how much thev can get for the work they do. The way 
to charge is to make the price as high as a customer will 
pay without being driven away, and not to make it as 
low as can be afforded. That is business; that is what 
we are all in business for — to make money — to gather in 
a profit from the labor of others, greater than we can 
earn by our own labor. The best business man is the one 
who gets all that he honestly can, and the poor business 
man is the one who always works too cheaply. There 
is no sentiment about doing business for a profit. If one 
is charitably inclined he can give away the money he 
makes in business, but it is not good business to give the 
profits to customers. 

When the printer becomes a proprietor he requires to 
forget, in a measure, that he is a printer, and to bear ever 
before him the idea that he is a business man, whose 



6 THE PRINTER AS A BUSINESS MAN. 

duty as such is to sell printing at a profitable tlgure. By 
being a good printer he will be able the more easily to 
sell at a top price; but if a man in the printing business 
had to choose between being a good printer and a good 
business man he had better choose the latter a hundred 
and one times out of a hundred. As a business man his 
place is no longer at the case or over the cylinder. He 
should hire others and make a profit on their work — that 
is business; that is a legitimate way of making money, 
and he who has not learned it is not yet qualified as a 
business man. 

A few printers have the advantage of growing up in 
business under the guidance of some successful master- 
printer who has kept up with the times, and who has 
been willing to impart his business knowledge to those 
under him. This is often the case with sons, who are 
educated to perpetuate a large business, and who come 
naturally by the training passed on to them by an experi- 
enced parent; but the rank and file of printers have to 
pick up their business training by dear experience. 
There is no school of instruction in managing the business 
end of a printing office. It is often a matter of complaint 
in the trade that so little chance is afforded to apprentices 
to learn the trade properly, but the opportunities for 
learning how to manage the business office and to reap a 
profit from printing are less common than those of the 
apprentice who strives to master the mechanical details 
of the art. 

The beginner in the printing business, and the man 
who has been in it for some years and failed to make a 
profit, both suffer from the lack of an adviser. There is 
no fount of general information to which either can go 
and gather the knowledge of how to make money out of 



THE PRINTER AS A BUSINESS MAN. 7 

the printing office. The people who have learned it do 
not go about advising young competitors how to succeed, 
and if such do occasionally drop a word of good, season- 
able advice to a beginner, ten to one the young man in 
business suspects that it is a pointer given to mislead him, 
and goes contrary to the advice. This is usually the case 
when an established printer remonstrates with a new- 
comer in the field as to cutting prices. The newcomer is 
sure to think that the established printer is simply worked 
up because he is losing trade to him, and so the young- 
ster in business laughs in his sleeve, and goes on cutting 
rates to his own ruin and the damage of the trade in his 
vicinity. It is natural that a beginner in business should 
think that the way to get work is to lower the prices; 
but the men who have been there know that the way to 
get customers worth having is to keep up both the quality 
and the price. 

The first thing, then, that a printer contemplating going 
into business should study is the business methods of 
successful concerns. If he does not know them he is 
sure to lose money; if he appreciates his lack of such 
knowledge he will find a way to acquire it, and it is 
cheaper to learn before an investment is made in type and 
presses than it is to learn afterwards by the dear road 
of experience. Happy is the man who can thrive on the 
experience, and pass the mistakes, of others. The rules 
and principles that guide experienced men of business are 
too often dearly bought. I recently heard a good printer 
and good business man say, "I did thousands of dollars 
worth of printing before I really knew what it cost to 
produce it, and I ought to have received ten to twenty 
per cent, more for thawork that I did in those years, and 
I might have had it, had 1 known what I now know." 



8 THE PRINTER AS A BUSINESS MAN. 

This book is an endeavor to gather together and form- 
ulate the underlying principles which should govern the 
printer as a business man. In its compilation the views 
of various successful printers have been more or less 
embodied, and the means that they have employed to 
erect and maintain their business structures have been 
studied and reduced to manuscript. From the compli- 
cated nature of the case it is impossible to form set rules 
for the guidance of the printer in all exigencies of busi- 
ness. Every matter that comes before him for consider- 
ation has some points of difference from every other 
instance, and must be decided according to the best light 
and knowledge that he has at the time. In such a work 
we can deal with principles only, and he who applies the 
principles most accurately is likely to become the most 
successful business printer. 

A printer may be a good business man in some 
respects and yet seriously lacking in others, and that too 
without realizing where he is weak. I have seen men 
who knew how to buy paper and presses to the very best 
advantage, securing the last item of discount and most 
favorable terms, but who were always at the mercy of a 
customer wiio gave the bluff that so-and-so would do a 
particular job for so much less money. Then again 1 
have seen a printer who was a past master in the art of 
talking to customers, and who knew how to satisfy all 
and get the highest prices for his work, but who did not 
know enough to protect himself against the drummer, 
but invariably paid the top price going, frequently for an 
inferior article. Men of this sort do well in partnership, 
where the talents of each can be utilized, but the man 
who fmds himself weak in some business essential should 
cultivate improvement in that particular ; and the man 



THE PRINTER AS A BUSINESS MAN. 9 

who thinks himself strong in all points should watch 
himself to learn whether he has not weaknesses of which 
other shrewd business men will take advantage. 

The art of business is more than a knowledge of 
trade — it involves a knowledge of men, and the ability 
to lead them to do what you desire. It is the business of 
a printer to see that his customers should have lots of good 
orders for printing, and to accomplish this he must be 
able to show them how and where it will pay to increase 
an order. The printer should ever be urging on the cus- 
tomer that if a thing is worth doing at all it is worth doing 
well, and that such and such things would improve the 
job in hand. To impress customers, and get them to 
take advice, involves a wide knowledge of human nature, 
and the peculiar gifts of a salesman. The business printer 
who finds that he has not these in his make-up will hire 
a man or take in a partner who has, and devote his own 
time to pushing other branches of the business. 

It is hoped that the printer who is already a good 
business man will read this book and add to and com- 
pare with his own ripe experience, while the printer who 
is not yet a business man will receive hints which will 
cause him to study business methods, and the art of so 
managing a printery that the receipts shall always exceed 
the outgo. 

Tyros in the printing business are often deceived as 
to their success during the first few years of a career. 
Because the presses are busy and the cash comes and 
goes, they think that they are doing a good rushing 
business; but as the years roll on and the presses become 
ancient and the type worn, and no balance has been 
accumulated in the bank to renew the material, they 
realize that they have been dupes to circumstances instead 



10 THE PRINTER AS A BUSINESS MAN. 

of successful business men. One of the most prosperous 
printers whom I ever met has several times expressed 
himself to this effect : "1 never could see the use of doing 
printing for anybody unless 1 was quite sure that I would 
get more for it than I paid out, and I never trusted a man 
or firm beyond a certain sum, no matter how high they 
were rated, as I do not furnish capital for others to carry 
on business. The enforcement of these rules turns away 
a large part of the work that is offered me, but 1 do not 
think that 1 have ever lost any money by insisting upon 
them." 

It is well to get down to basic principles once in a 
while, and strip an argument of all its confusing detail. 
In the present case all the discussion as to what makes a 
printer a good business man or a poor one may be 
summed up in this short sentence : The printer who is 
a good business man is he who has mastered the art of 
getting considerably more for his work than he pays for 
its production. Never forget this — from a purely busi- 
ness standpoint all else is trivial — charge a profitable price 
and see that you get the money. 



CHAPTER II. 

STARTING AN OFFICE. 

The first point to be considered in starting a job print- 
ing office is whether there is a prospect of securing a 
desirable run of custom. If there is no trade in sight there 
is no call for the starting of a printery; if the work in the 
field is already in the hands of competent printers who 
are giving satisfaction, it is a doubtful matter whether it 
can be secured at a profitable rate. When an apparently 
good opening is found, it should be canvassed with the 
greatest care. Suppose, for instance, that a printer is 
disposed to open a printing office in a city of 25,000 
inhabitants, where there are already two job offices and 
five newspaper offices doing job work. He should inves- 
tigate, first, how much printing there is to give out in the 
city, and then whether it is done mostly by the local 
offices or whether a considerable percentage goes out of 
town. The amount being approximately known, he must 
consider how much of that work he would have to secure 
to make a satisfactory business; then his chances for 
getting that share require to be thoroughly investigated. 
What are the fLicilities and the character of the offices 
already in the field ? ' Are they up to date, and are the 
proprietors hustlers.^ If so, they may be able to hold 
their work against all comers. 

In choosing a city for starting an office, the wise 
printer will not decide because his liking is toward a place 



12 STARTING AN OFFICE. 

socially or for non-business reasons, when other places 
offer better openings. He should choose a city that has 
established manufactories, and that is growing; one in 
which the merchants are good advertisers, and in which 
there are societies and organizations requiring printing. 
If he does not take these things into account he may find 
later that it is impossible to develop trade beyond a very 
limited amount. The printer who would succeed in 
business must make sure that he starts rightly, else his 
subsequent efforts may be largely fruitless. 

A proper field may often be selected for a printery by 
reason of some offer or opportunity for controlling large 
work. If a printer knows that he can get the work of a 
large concern as a nucleus, this may be a sufficient induce- 
ment to start in. It is very doubtful whether it is ever 
wise to start a printing office without advance assurance 
of considerable work at remunerative prices; for if one 
cannot get the promise of work before starting, how can 
one expect to do much better after putting in a plant ? 

It is almost always a safe thing to start a job print- 
ing plant in connection with a good daily or weekly 
newspaper in a live town or city, for the paper brings 
custom to the job department. For this reason it is 
always a doubtful matter whether a job office unconnected 
with a newspaper can be made to pay in a small city or 
town. If such an office has to depend on the work of 
merchants, churches, societies, politicians, etc., it will be 
found that these all drift toward the newspaper office, 
because they want notices in the paper. But where 
there are manufactories, or where there is book publish- 
ing, the newspaper does not carry an influence; in fact, 
the job printer who is divorced from a newspaper probably 
has the best chance of commanding the work. In cities 



STARTING AN OFFICE. 1 3 

above 23,000 it is almost always possible for some one 
firm to build up a large job printing business aside from a 
newspaper; below 10,000 it is almost always best to be 
tied to a newspaper, and between the two populations 
circumstances must determine the choice. 

When a printer has fully made up his mind that he is 
in the right town, and when he has definite assurances of 
a reasonable amount of work at starting, and a fair pros- 
pect of developing more, he must next consider whether 
he has the requisite capital to make a proper start. It is 
a mistake to begin with too little money, for interest 
payments, combined with inadequate facilities, will eat 
up all the profits and afford very limited chances of 
success. Remember that we are considering the starting 
of an office that must be a success, that must be a money- 
earner, and not the case of a printer who must start an 
office, and trust to chance for the result. 1 doubt 
whether it is ever desirable for a printer to start business 
with less than half enough capital to pay for his plant. 
A young man with $1,000 may start a $1,500 plant, pay 
half cash, and bank $250 to run on until the receipts will 
carry him, and if he gets the work, and is economical, 
he can pay off his mortgage and later add to his plant. 
But the young man with only $500, who tries to do the 
same thing, can pay only one-fourth down on his plant, 
and the dealers will charge him a large advance before 
they will gamble on him. and take the chances of selling 
the machinery and type. Then he will have only enough 
money left to pay his freight, a month's rent, and a few 
minor expenses, and by the time his first job goes on press 
he is out of cash, and before the first ninety days roll 
around, when he has to pay his first note, he realizes that 
he is in a hole. Such a man puts his neck deliberately 



14 STARTING AN OFFICE. 

into the noose of trouble, and the chances are ten to one 
that he will never get it out without being choked. 
How much better, then, for him to wait another two 
years, when the savings from his wages would enable 
him to start on a $i,ooo basis. 

1 do not wish to be understood as advocating that 
$i,ooo is the proper sum with which to start a $1,500 
office, but simply that this is my idea of the limit of debt 
that may be safely contracted. 1 think that probably two 
times out of three the printer with $1,000 had better wait 
until he gets more money before starting. In large cities 
it is folly for a printer to begin business with $1,000 or 
even $2,000. These amounts maybe sufficient in smaller 
places, but in a great city the small printer is so handi- 
capped by the superior facilities of the big offices that he 
usually fails to earn as much as the men in his employ. 
He is only able to exist at all by hiring cheap help, having 
feeders do the work of pressmen, and two-thirders do the 
composition, and these things entail a chain of ills which 
no man would voluntarily and knowingly encounter. 

A printer with $2,000 or $3,000, and an aching to go 
into business in a great city, had better take stock in a 
large concern, where his investment will secure him a 
foremanship with a good salary, and then hustle for the 
establishment, and try to work his way up to a larger 
holding and greater salary. Or he may make a success 
in an office of his own if he can induce outside investors 
to back his small capital with $5,000 to $10,000, thus 
giving him a chance to buy the best class of machinery, 
even if the quantity is limited. This involves a knowledge 
of finance and business that does not come to a printer 
fresh from the case, and should not be undertaken except 
by a man who is confident that his business training is 



STARTING AN OFFICE. I 5 

sufficient to enable him to cope with the emergencies that 
will arise. In accepting outside capital he must take care 
that he is not saddled with an untrained and useless 
partner, who is eating up a salary that he does not 
earn. The safe rule is not to accept outside capital if 
offered with hampering restrictions. Money can be ob- 
tained by many competitors at six per cent., and if you 
pay more for it you are at a disadvantage, and liable to 
go to the wall. 

With enough work in sight, and sufficient money to 
make a good start, the printer next requires to consider a 
location. The beginner is all too apt to look for a cheap 
rental. Here it should be remembered that cheap things 
are seldom good. While a job printer does not require 
to be as conspicuously located as a dry goods man, he 
does require to be in as good or a better place than any 
other printer in his town. Location always influences 
trade, and has much to do with securing first orders, which 
are everything to the man starting a printing office. Stick 
to the business centre, and avoid too many stairs. If 
possible secure a place where you can have a good sign 
privilege, and use it for all it is worth. Do not try to save 
too much on rental, for it is poor economy. You must 
be where people can see you without going out of their 
way, if you are to have the trade. Remember, too, that 
you cannot afford to be where there is a poor light, as it 
wastes the time of workmen. Neither can you afford to 
go into a shaky building, where there are other tenants 
who pay more rent than you, for as sure as you do, the 
jar and vibration of your presses will make trouble that 
may be expensive for you. The printer who neglects this 
warning will almost always live to be sorry for it. If you 
can get your presses on a solid floor, away from those 



1 6 STARTING AN OFFICE. 

whom they may annoy, with good light and a central 
locality, you can afford to pay a rental that otherwise 
might seem high. 

Probably volumes have been printed on the choice of 
material for an office, and volumes more might be pub- 
lished without throwing much more light on the subject, 
for the choice must be different in every case, and must suit 
the circumstances. Everything offered the printer by the 
manufacturers and dealers has some utility, and may be 
used to advantage somewhere, but the type and presses 
suited to some classes of work are sometimes wholly 
useless in a printery of a different character. We have all 
seen tables of what to buy in starting a $i,ooo office or a 
$2,000 office, and lists of type that some one thought best 
suited to general job work. 1 regard such lists as prac- 
tically useless, for the choice must be dependent on the 
work that is to be handled and the pocketbook that 
pays the bill. 

A word of warning is in place here against the purchase 
of second-hand material. It is almost always the dearest 
in the long run. A printer starting with inadequate 
capital often thinks it better to buy one hundred fonts of 
second-hand type than to spend the same money for fifty 
fonts of new letter. He forgets that the shortage of sorts 
in the second-hand stuff usuallv renders it incapable of 
setting up much more than half of the amount which can 
be composed from new, properly assorted type, while the 
difference in appearance is apt to be fatal to the production 
of fine work. The purchase of second-hand presses may 
not affect the quality of the work produced, as the good 
workman will turn out nice work on almost any press, 
but it will involve the loss of time, that largest item of 
expense in the printing business, and place the printer at 



STARTING AN OFFICE. I7 

a disadvantage in figuring against offices supplied with 
up-to-date machinery. 

There are exceptions to all rules, and just so there are 
times when it is advisable to buy at second hand. Real 
bargains are sometimes offered, and when you can get 
just what your office stands in need of for less than the 
market price because the article is blighted as second-hand, 
it may be well to buy it. But the safe rule is — when in 
doubt, always buy the newest and latest material or 
machinery. 

The selection of the first lot of machinery and type will 
depend upon the character of the work that is contracted 
for or that it is reasonably certain will be demanded. The 
little job presses are money-earners for small work, but 
money-losers if used on book work or for long runs. 
The pony cylinder is valuable for a great deal of miscellane- 
ous commercial work, but when it comes to publications 
and long runs of large sheets there is nothing like the 
modern two-revolution or perfecter for economy. Just so 
with paper cutters : for small stock in a small office a 
light machine may answer every purpose, but where the 
cutter is kept busy all day long, the bigger and stronger 
it is the better. 

It is hardly necessary in this age to tell the printer to 
buy job type in series, and that few fonts and large ones 
will go further than the same value in small fonts. Every 
good printer ought to know these facts, and this book is 
written on the assumption that the readers are already 
capable printers who know the trade. Yet perhaps this 
chapter would be incomplete without a repetition of these 
well-known truths. The printer should buy sparingly at 
the outset, reserving a part of his money or his credit for 
the purchase of additions that may be demanded by special 



1 8 STARTING AN OFFICE. 

work coming in. When type is bought especially for 
work of which the order is in the printer's hands, he knows 
that it will see some service, whereas that bought wholly 
in advance must be purchased on conjecture. 

Do not try to get along without power. No printer 
can afford to kick a press nowadays when a horse-power 
can be bought for from $50 to $100 a year. Electric 
power is very convenient for the printer, as it costs 
nothing when idle. The motors are sold very cheaply, 
and are not hard to keep in order. In the country, 
steam power is often preferred because of its adaptability 
to heating. In the large office, where the horse-power 
runs up into the fifties or hundreds, it is often best to have 
a complete steam-power plant, which may be used either 
directly, or to drive a dynamo for delivering electricity to 
motors. The gas engine is very useful where power is 
required only at certain hours, as it consumes nothing 
when not in use. 

For further details and comments on material, see the 
chapters on "The Composing Room" and "The Press- 
room." 

It is well to fit up the business office attractively from 
the very start. If you have good office furniture, a neat 
carpet, and comfortable surroundings, these serve to impress 
customers with the idea that the establishment is reliable 
and substantial, whereas a mean or cheap-looking office, 
or an old desk set in a corner for use as an office, impresses 
buyers of printing with the notion that it is a cheap place, 
whence high-class printing can not be expected. Just as 
a job of printing must have all the refinements essential to 
good work to produce the proper effect, just so the business 
office requires to be fitted up attractively to draw custom 
and assist in the securing of good prices. 



STARTING AN OFFICE. 1 9 

The caretlil printer will never take any unnecessary 
chances in starting an office. Of course any new business 
involves a certain amount of risk, but the chances of loss 
will be very large for those who neglect the simple rules 
laid down as the result of experience and the exercise of 
common sense. It is unwise to force a start when cir- 
cumstances will not lend themselves to make the condi- 
tions good. If there is a little uncertainty about getting 
all the rteeded money, or if the work expected is only 
half promised, or if a period of panic and hard times has 
just set in, or if proper rooms cannot be rented, it is best 
to wait, for any of these things can be bettered in time ; 
but if a start is made with any such handicaps, a con- 
tinual menace overhangs the whole structure. When the 
printer is satisfied that the conditions for starting are as 
good as can be f^iirly expected, and the whole enterprise 
commends itself to his judgment, he should then have 
the courage of his convictions and go ahead energetically, 
remembering that it is well not to do things by halves, 
and that in order to print at a profit he must have good 
tools and labor-saving devices. The printer who starts 
thus, barring accidents and unforeseeable and unsurmount- 
able obstacles, has a good chance to succeed. 

By doing business in a fair manner, always demanding 
a fair profit, and never delivering a poor job or permitting 
delays; by holding out no filse promises, but meeting 
all obligations promptly, the printer who can do good 
work has a very good chance of attaining a competencv 
in business. There are many printers who argue that 
job work is a poor business, that it is crowded to death, 
and that there is no money in it, and never will be. But 
these are men who did not start right, and who never 
managed to get right, so as to acquire the habits that 



20 STARTING AN OFFICE. 

lead to success. There is money in the top ranks of 
printerdom, just as much as in the top ranks of any trade, 
and plenty of profitable business for those who have the 
push, pluck, perseverance and probity essential to reach- 
ing the upper levels. 



CHAPTER III. 

WHAT CLASS OF CUSTOMERS TO SEEK. 

While it is perhaps the general impression that the 
customer chooses his printer, yet it is equally true that 
the successful printer chooses his own customers. Just 
as the superior workman may select his own employer, 
because any and all are glad to have him, so the supe- 
rior master printer may take his pick of the best-paying 
customers in his territory, if he be an adept in handling 
them. 

Customers may be divided into several classes: 
I. Those customers who do not care what they pay. 
To this class belong officers of certain institutions, 
societies, departments of government, etc. The money 
for the printing they order does not come out of their 
pockets, and they know that they will never be called 
upon for a strict accounting of its expenditure. It is the 
duty of the printer who caters to them to make things 
pleasant, save them all possible trouble, cultivate their 
personal friendship, give them perfect work, prompt 
delivery and all the conveniences and extras desired, as 
they willingly pay for such service. These are a good, 
easy class of customers, of which almost every printer 
has one or more on his books. Few printers fail to 
cater to them, though 1 have known some who did 
not know enough to render themselves agreeable to this 
class. A failure to be specially polite and attentive to 



22 WHAT CLASS OF CUSTOMERS TO SEEK. 

such may easily result in the loss of their custom, wYiich 
is sure to be wanted by others. 

2. Customers who prefer to pay a high price, if 
this insures them a better article. All such require to 
be handled with much care. They are often notional, 
and not always easy to recognize at first meeting. 
When such a customer is once found, he can usually be 
retained by giving him the best work, and occasionally 
calling his attention to the fact that "We charge you a 
little more than others, but we take extra pains with 
everything." This class of customers should be cultivated 
and developed. There are many brainy men among 
them, men who handle money by the thousands, and 
whose business ventures are often so dependent on the 
effect of a good piece of printing that they cannot afford 
to take chances of mediocrity, much less inferiority. They 
prefer to go to the printer who has a reputation. 

3. Customers who do not object to paying the 
highest market price if they have a practical guarantee 
of the best service. To this class belong the most 
substantial and desirable customers in the trade. Men 
and firms that carry their enterprises to a successful 
issue, that push and prosper, largely contribute to make 
up this class. It is foolish to cut prices too closely for 
such customers. They want only the best work, and if 
a way can be shown to better it, they will pay the extra 
cost; but they are hard-headed enough to insist that 
they get the very best. They do not take any stock in the 
fancy prices that sometimes affect class 2 ; they want the 
best, and want it on a square business basis. They are 
the kind of customers of which the printer stands most 
in need, and the best efforts of every printer should be 
bent towards getting their work. The first two classes 



WHAT CLASS OF CUSTOMERS TO SEEK. 2^ 

are limited in numbers, and it is more or less a matter 
of luck how many of them are secured, but in this class 
there is always room for development — always more 
customers who can be brought into it. The wise printer 
will always be devising ways and means for educating 
average customers into those of this class. They are the 
main-stays of the large houses, and furnish the bulk of 
the patronage to the most successful printeries. 

4. Customers who must have good printing, but 
who will pay for it only when they have to. Every 
printer fmds himself obliged to deal more or less with 
this class. It is difficult to make money out of them, 
yet it can be done by careful and judicious dealing. 
The printer who works for such must be absolutely 
inflexible as to his terms and prices; must insist on 
short credits and stop work when payments are slow; 
must afford no loopholes for deductions and return 
charges; must demand a cash profit on all he does for 
them, and take no chances on the evasion of payment. 
When it becomes a doubtful matter with the printer 
whether he can hold his own and get a profit out of 
such a customer, it is best to drop him. Let him go 
every time when he degenerates into the class below. 

5. Customers who make it a rule to protest about 
errors, shortages, delays, etc., always claiming a rebate, 
and refusing to pay the full price charged. This class 
should be let severely alone, and the printer who has 
the good of the trade at heart will pass around among 
competitors the names of firms whose trade is objec- 
tionable on this account. Cash with the order is the 
only consideration that should induce any one to touch 
the work of such people, as otherwise experience with 
them will develop only profitless vexation. They are 



24 WHAT CLASS OF CUSTOMERS TO SEEK. 

sure to keep the printer poor if they get the chance, and 
even the poorest and least wise printer will sooner or 
later show them the door. 

6. Customers who are satisfied with medium quality, 
and who demand a very close price. There are hosts 
of such; probably they are the most numerous class of 
customers. A careful printer can make wages out of 
them, and no more. It is impossible to keep up a 
reputation for fme work, while retaining many patrons 
of this sort. They will not pay for those extra touches 
that distinguish fine work from the ordinary kind. The 
most successful printers ignore this class. I have known 
the head of an eminent house to instruct the men who 
waited on his customers to tell such people, "We are 
very busy; why don't you go down to Blank's? 1 guess 
that he will accommodate you." Blank thinks that the 
eminent printer is singularly kind, and hustles sixteen 
hours a day, working for this class of people and making 
a bare living. Is it worth while to go into the printing 
business for such a result.^ There might be more money, 
and certainly there would not be more work, in running 
an all-night restaurant, or something of that sort. Much 
time may be wasted by the printer in estimating for 
this class. A good way to avoid it is to inquire of 
every stranger asking figures on a large job, what offices 
are estimating on the work, and if it appears that he is 
seeking a number of estimates from second-class offices 
he is then surely a No. 6 customer, whose trade is of 
very doubtful value. 

7. Customers who think that they are shrewd, and 
who never will give an order unless they receive numer- 
ous discounts and a big fall from the first price. The 
chief difficulty with such customers lies in recognizing 



WHAT CLASS OF CUSTOMERS TO SEEK. 2^ 

their character at first sight. With judgment they may 
often be handled to a profit. 

8. Customers who do not care what the quahty of 
work may be so long as it is cheap. A very undesirable 
class, working for whom tends to ruin a printer's repu- 
tation for ability to do fine work. 

9. Customers who can be dealt with only on a C. O. 
D. basis. This class is made up of schemers, indigents 
and unreliable people generally. All printers must expect 
to have to do with them, and sometimes there is profit 
enough in their work, provided great care is exercised 
in securing deposits in advance, and getting the balance 
of the cash before the work leaves the printing office. 
Some of this class are deliberate swindlers, and such 
should be dropped when recognized, as it does not pay 
to do business with such people on any terms; but the 
simply unreliable may be made to yield the printer a 
tolerable portion of his yearly profits by the simple course 
of never trusting them. It is never worth while to run 
after such custom, but when it comes, and will pay a 
fair price, and can be protected, it should be accepted. 
The danger then lies only with the printer himself, who 
must be sure that he will not, in a moment of weak- 
ness, trust such an one without a deposit, or allow him 
to take away any portion of his work while there 
remains an unpaid balance. With this class of customer 
the printer can afford to be very independent. 

10. Customers who never mean to pay at all. The 
difficulty that the printer has with this class is in de- 
tecting them. They are of all sorts, appearances and 
characters. The most dangerous are those who wear 
good clothes, understand business methods, and who 
come in as total strangers, paying spot cash for a few 



26 WHAT CLASS OF CUSTOMERS TO SEEK. 

jobs and then seek to take away a large job on the 
Strength of the business acquaintance thus established. 
There is only one safeguard against such people, and 
that is in the establishment of an inviolable rule never 
to give credit until you have thoroughly investigated a 
customer. 

The class of customers to be specially sought, it will 
be understood from the above, are those who have 
learned that it pays to have good printing, and that 
they must allow the printer a reasonable profit to secure 
prompt, reliable and generally superior service. The 
wise printer will make a list of all such in his field, and 
devote his energies to getting a chance at their work. 
When some printer has failed to give satisfaction to such 
a customer, then is the chance for a newcomer. A 
reputation for fine work is worth a great deal in such 
a case, and a reputation for cheap work is almost pro- 
hibitive. This is why the printer who aims to be at 
the top of the industry cannot afford to do cheap work 
even at a present profit. Its shortcomings are noticed, 
and his reputation suffers, and his chances of getting 
other good-paying, high-quality work are lessened. 
Keep up a reputation and good customers will drift 
toward you ; forget that you have a reputation, and 
everyone else will also forget it.' 

Always be prepared for sudden and large demands 
upon your facilities, remembering that the emergency of 
a customer is the opportunity to demonstrate your effi- 
ciency. Every good printer is liable to have unexpected 
calls for work because of accidents or unforeseen circum- 
stances. A lawyer finds that he must have a case 
printed on twenty-four hours notice. If you are ready, 
and do the work well and on time, you may have a 



WHAT CLASS OF CUSTOMERS TO SLl-K. 27 

good customer. A manufacturer discovers a reason why 
a price list must be issued at once, and the last one 
having been delayed by some other printer, concludes to 
give you a trial. By being always ready and willing to 
work day or night to help a customer out of a dilemma, 
you gain not only his permanent trade, but that of others, 
to whom he may mention your promptness. 

It has been an axiom with many successful firms 
that it does not pay to do business with "cheap" people, 
because the good custom lost more than offsets the small 
profit that can be made from the cheap class. It is the 
business of the printer to seek always the trade of the 
substantial firms in his community, and to seek them by 
means of general excellence and prompt service rather 
than by the cutting of prices. The notion that the most 
practical way to get work is to cut the price is erroneous 
in that it leads only to the getting of work that is not 
specially desirable. The way to get work worth having 
is to get up a reputation for fine printing with satisfaction 
guaranteed. That will surely, even if slowly, bring custom 
from the sort of people whose trade is worth having. 

Another reason why it is a mistake to cater to a 
cheap class of work, is that if it is turned away it usually 
goes to some less wise competitor, -and keeps him busy 
and not in condition to satisfactorily execute the better 
and more profitable work when it comes along. In 
other words, it pays to let competitors have the cheap 
work, if they are foolish enough to take it. The printer 
who is building up a trade may find times when he feels 
obliged to take some moderately cheap work, through 
force of circumstances, but he should never solicit any 
but the higher grades of work, that tend to build up a 
substantial business. 



28 WHAT CLASS OF CUSTOMERS TO SEEK. 

An old-time printer, with more experience than 
dollars, once said to me: "\ have wasted many of the 
best years of my life working for 'no-account' people. 
My books tell the story of my career for thirty years, 
and 1 have been at some pains to study them, running 
back through the accounts of this class of customers, and 
I find that they have always been a drag upon me. I 
made a little money out of half of them, but more than 
lost it on the other half. It has been only the custom 
of the better class that has kept the sheriff out of my 
place. If I had known enough years ago to refuse all 
dealings with people who wanted cheap work, 1 should 
have made twice as much money, worn out only a 
quarter as much material, had a great deal easier time, 
and been abou!; ten years younger in health and spirits 
than 1 am. But my experience has come a little too late 
in life to be of much use to me. 1 am now a sort of 
has-been, and so much cheap work has gone out of my 
place that nobody thinks of bringing me fine work, and 
I can only peg along for the few good customers that I 
happen to have until my time comes to step out. But 
if 1 could pass along my experience to some energetic 
young fellow, it would earn him good money in the 
printing business. It is a good enough business in itself, 
but many of us do not learn to run our offices to a profit 
until we get antiquated."' 

Avoid cheap customers and cheap work, seeking only 
the better class of printing, and the most substantial firms 
as customers, and with fair management in other respects 
you can hardly fail of success; but if you neglect this 
rule, even if you keep all other good rules, you will 
never become conspicuous for your success in the trade. 



CHAPTER IV. 

HOW TO DEVELOP BUSINESS. 

The printer who has made a good start in business, 
or who has purchased an established plant, requires to 
understand how to develop his trade, since to stand still 
in these times, when so many are going ahead, is to fall 
behind in the race for precedence. One essential to 
success in the printing business is a good location. By 
this 1 mean more than a central position, or a place in 
the thick of the business portion of a city — 1 mean a 
location that is good from every point of view. For 
instance, that printer in a large city who is located in 
the near vicinity of half a dozen printers who cut prices 
is but poorly situated as compared with another who 
has his office near to large and successful printeries, 
whose proprietors are recognized as upholders of prices, 
and whose reputation enables them to charge and receive 
more for their work than others. The former is too often 
forced to get what he can in the general scramble to 
find work for the presses ; the latter occasionally secures 
some of the overflow of work from his good neighbors, 
and at profitable rates, and all his chances for getting 
customers who will pay good prices are better for his 
proximity, which suggests that he is in a good class. 
Another point of view regarding location is that it should 
be convenient to the most desirable class of customers 
rather than convenient to everybody. Of course both 



30 HOW TO DEVELOP BUSINESS. 

are desirable, but the former is rather to be chosen, as 
in the line of developing a good class of substantial 
customers. Judgment must determine what is and what 
is not a good location, :is no set rules can be formulated ; 
but the printer who bears these points in mind will be 
better fitted to form a correct judgment than he who 
neglects such considerations. 

Advertising is of prime importance in the develop- 
ment of a printing business. Because they do so much 
advertising for others printers ought to be well able 
to use advertising for the advancement of their own 
business ; yet the majority of them neglect this means 
of development. The subject of advertising is so large 
that it is reserved for a separate chapter. 

Soliciting is the next most-used method of developing 
business. It has been discouraged by many large 
concerns on the ground that printing is a ten per cent, 
business, and that this margin will not afford paying 
for a solicitor. 1 am inclined to disagree with the view, 
and to hold that a judicious amount of soliciting is 
advantageous to the average printing office. It can be 
overdone, and fev^ printeries can afford to keep a good 
solicitor at work all the time. As a result good solicitors 
of printing are scarce, and proprietors require to have 
in their employ an office man, as a bookkeeper or the 
like, who has the gift of soliciting, and to send him out 
occasionally where the work is likely to be found. 
Whatever some may say to the contrary, depend upon 
it that all large establishments do practice more or less 
soliciting. They may not do it systematically in a regular 
way, and may have no employed drummers, but when 
they know that a large and desirable job is to be given 
out, one of the proprietors or somebody from the house 



HOW TO DEVELOP BUSINESS. 3 1 

; is sent out to assist its coming their way ; or if it is a 
question of estimate a few strings are pulled in proper 
quarters, and a good argument is advanced to show 
why the work should come to a certain office even if 
the price should be deemed a little high. 

It is the duty of every printer to keep himself 
informed of all the large work that is being given out 
in his vicinity, and to study and improve any chances 
he may have for influencing it. In this way he can 
usually get a share of the large orders that are in the 
general market. Every manufacturer who has a large 
amount of printing, every firm that advertises largely, 
every public institution, and in fact every desirable con- 
cern that has a considerable amount of work to give 
out within a printer's field, constitutes a possibility in 
a business way, and should be regularly considered and 
periodically interviewed, no matter what may seem to 
be the obstacles in the way of getting the work. To 
find out all the work that is worth having and to "go 
for it " should be a regular part of the work of every 
progressive printer, whether he does it by the ordinary 
way of solicitation, or in some other manner that 
commends itself to him. 

The getting acquainted with active business men is , 
an important factor in developing trade in printing. 
This may be accomplished by joining the local board 
of trade, or by organizing one if the place is without. 
A live board of trade always insures contact with good 
men, and the printer who meets them, and by his 
conduct shows that he is up to the times and a thorough 
business man, is sure to win business. In every place 
ther-e are social organizations frequented by business 
men, the printer should learn what these are and join 



J2 HOW TO DEVELOP BUSINESS. 

them. Whether it is a Free Mason's lodge, a church, a 
golf club or a political organization, if there are plenty 
of men who have the giving out of printing it is the 
wise thing for the printer to be one of them, and keep 
*Mn the swim." For thus he has more chances than 
the printers who do not follow these things. Of course 
it is not desirable to belong to so many societies or 
clubs that the dues eat up all the printer's spare change, 
and the duties of membership use up all his spare time. 
This sort of thing should be done moderately but 
thoroughly ; and if the printer by mistake has gone 
into organizations where there is no apparent business 
advantage he can quietly drop out again. In most cities 
I regard a board of trade, a building association, or a 
business men's club as the best field for exploitation of 
this sort. But here as in everything else the printer's 
own judgment must be the final court of decision as 
to what is best under the immediate circumstances. 

The working among politicians for political printing, 
or printing given out through political influence, is a 
business in itself, usually necessitating more or less use 
of means that cannot well be advocated in print. The 
more honorable of those who secure political printing 
get it as a return for work done for a political party, 
but this book is hardly the place for instruction in 
machine politics, and the printer who wants to know 
how to get city or county printing had best go to a 
successful local politician and take lessons. Those who 
want to cater to that sort of work are welcome to do 
so : the writer never had any great desire for it. 

Good printing, accuracy and promptness are three 
means of developing business that can hardly fail of 
accomplishing results. It does not pay in the long run 



HOW TO DEVELOP BUSINESS. }J 

to slight work. If a mistake has been made in estimat- 
ing, and a job is taken too low, it is unwise for the 
printer to try and save himself by slighting the job. 
By living up to his agreement with the customer, he 
prevents a poor job from going out of his office and 
injuring his reputation. By pinching the paper, skimping 
the count, rushing the proof and slighting the make- 
ready, he takes chances of having the job thrown back 
on his hands, or of being considered dishonest. It is 
better to suffer the loss bravely, frankly telling the cus- 
tomer that there has been a mistake, and that it cost so 
much more to turn out the job than the contract price. 
The customer is then apt to be willing to give the 
printer opportunity to make it up on other work, and 
in some instances he will go down in his pocket and 
pay more than the contract price. Anyway, he is retained 
as a customer, whereas the plan of taking the prospect- 
ive loss out of the job drives away the customer. The 
sure road to success lies in giving good printing first, 
last, and all the time. 

Accuracy is essential to the building up of a printing 
trade. Careless proof-reading, careless counting, careless- 
ness in anything will drive away good customers in time. 
Only by unceasing watchfulness can accuracy be assured. 
A system of checks and revisions should be placed over 
all work to insure that errors do not creep in. Extra- 
ordinary precautions are always necessary. If ordinary 
proof-reading is depended upon, sooner or later a job 
will be printed with a cut upside down, turned by a 
pressman in underlaying, and never noticed because 
there was no system calling for a final revision of the 
work on press ; or it may be that a job will be printed 
on the wrong stock because the proof-reader is not 



34 HOW TO DEVELOP BUSINESS. 

called upon to pay any attention to such matters. An 
efficient job ticket system, and rigid rules as to reading 
and revision are incumbent in all offices where there is 
a desire to maintain a reputation for accuracy. 

Never promise a job sooner than you can execute 
it, and never fail to deliver when promised. This is an 
easy rule to make and a hard one to follow, but the 
printer who will be at the trouble and pains to keep 
it is sure in time to reap a rich reward. The printer 
who is known to be always on time need never fear 
of losing his work to the price-cutters. Merchants who 
have had experience with delayed printing usually know 
that it is worth ten per cent, more than the " get-it- 
Avhen-you-can " kind. Promptness is one of the most 
essential requisites of development. Though the printer 
may have every other key to success, if he have not 
promptness he will never achieve any prominence. The 
printer who is prompt may be weak in many other 
respects, and yet his ability to be always on time will 
bring him trade and make him a valuable reputation. 

It has often been said that a satisfied customer is 
the best sort of an advertisement, and the proverb 
emphasizes a great truth. To build up a trade, one 
must give satisfaction to present customers, and as they 
tell others trade will expand and develop. Just as the 
housekeeper likes good measure from her grocer, so the 
customer likes a full count, superior stock, and various 
little accommodations, and the wise printer will give 
all these and see to it that his margin of profit is large 
enough to afford the minor extras, so that he may treat 
his customers liberally, and avoid a reputation for 
meanness in small things. 



HOW TO DEVELOP BUSINESS. 35 

The printer who is known as a good and careful 
workman, who delivers orders when promised, has 
achieved a reputation that of itself will develop his 
business. With correct management in other respects 
he may expect to obtain in time a large and valuable 
business, which cannot be taken from him, and that 
can only be lost by continued negligence and disregard 
of the principles on which it was founded. Push, 
honesty, accuracy and ability, if persistently employed 
will carry almost any printing concern to the top of 
the art. 



CHAPTER V. 

WRITING ADVERTISING MATTER, ETC., 
FOR CUSTOMERS. 

The intelligent job printer will never permit himself 
to forget that printing is allied to advertising, and 
that almost all of the printing that he does depends in 
some way upon its success as an advertisement or 
as an advertising medium. If it prove profitable from 
the advertising standpoint, there is more work for the 
printer. It therefore behooves printers to become stu- 
dents of advertising, that they may be able to advise 
and assist their patrons in the production of printing 
that will be profitable. 

The average customer for printing is not as expert a 
writer as the average printer ; he has not the knowledge 
of detail and arrangement of matter that comes naturally 
to the man of types ; he is rarely an expert in adver- 
tising. Often he is a man of good business ideas who 
needs to be helped in the detail of working out his 
thoughts so that the printing may be profitable. A few 
printers are alive to these facts, and in their establish- 
ments, as in the Lotus Press, have inaugurated a regular 
system of assisting customers in the literary part of the 
work, taking their ideas and working them out in a 
manner that will make the printing doubly attractive. 

The printer who can do nothing but print well is a 
good enough man for the production of reprint work. 



WRlTlNu ADVERTISING MATTI-R FOR CUSTOMKRS. 37 

but the printer who writes and edits copy is the man 
to whom new work should be given. The public is 
finding this out in the cities where the latter class of 
printers are to be found, and trade is drifting their way. 
The printer who has never given attention to this side 
of the trade is advised to subscribe for a number of the 
papers now published in the interest of advertising and 
to read and study them thoroughly. He will then have 
J fund of catchy ideas to draw upon, and from which 
he may make suggestions to patrons wherever he sees 
the chance to work them in appropriately. Suppose it 
is simply the proprietor of a meat and fish market who 
wants to get out a circular to send to his customers. He 
thinks he wants a thousand small dodgers, and writes 
out a list of beef, pork, veal, mutton, fish, oysters and 
clams, etc., and heads it "Notice." Such a circular will be 
of little value to him, and the printer-advertiser will say: 
" Why don't you head this * Don't worry about Oysters ! ' 
That sounds catchy. Then go on to say, ' Dinner begins 
with dainty oysters,' and explain how very particular you 
i\re. about delivering half-shells promptly and attractively 
at the minute they are wanted ; call attention to the 
quality of your meats and the excellence of your service. 
Then, if 1 were you, instead of getting up a plain, 
cheap circuLir. that most people will throw away before 
reading, get up something more attractive. Ten of 
these will be read to one of the other, and it will be 
much more apt to bring you trade." By talking this 
way the printer often gets a five dollar job instead of 
a two dollar one, and it is dollars to doughnuts that 
the meat man is back again inside of three months for 
another of those business-bringing circulars. After that 
the printer's competitors cannot touch him, for he has 



38 WRITING ADVERTISING MATTER FOR CUSTOMERS. 

learned that he can buy of one what he cannot buy 
from others. 

Suppose that a manufacturer who wants to issue a 
booklet comes in to consult the printer. It soon appears 
that he is not ready with his pen and that he has to 
be instructed at every turn. The printer volunteers a 
few suggestions. The manufacturer is pleased, cheer- 
fully pays for compiling and arranging, and thus the 
order is clinched and a customer made who will remain 
with the printer who furnishes literary assistance with 
his printing. But for this ability to help with the copy 
the manufacturer would probably have figured with 
half a dozen printers, and given it to some one at a 
very close price, which would have yielded a profit to 
nobody. 

Some newspapers become very valuable properties 
because they make money for their advertising patrons 
who cannot be weaned away from them. It is equally- 
possible for some printeries to build up their trade by 
making it a point to see that the printing pays the 
customer. In all large cities there are now advertising 
experts who furnish booklets and that class of matter 
to merchants, just as they write advertisements. The 
advertising expert can often control the printing of the 
work he writes and designs. He is only human if he 
demands a percentage from the printer to whom he 
turns over his work. That printer who is looking for 
general commercial work is not up to the times if he 
does not take a hint from this and equip himself to 
render this service to his customers. 

The writing of advertising matter, or of any sort of 
matter, for customers, is a thing not generally practiced 
by printers, yet there can be no question about its 



WRITING ADVERTISING MATTER FOR CUSTOMERS. 39 

advantage to the printer. Those few who have adopted 
it have proved that it is a winner. Doubtless the 
principal reason why it has not been generally adopted 
by printers is that most of them have felt a lack of 
ability to write and edit for their customers. Such a 
feeling should not restrain any printer from making the 
attempt. You can learn to do this as well as you have 
learned to do other new things to advance your business. 
If fully satisfied that you cannot develop any capacity 
of this sort, you have still the privilege of hiring a man 
who can write taking matter for your customers. 

Times have changed in this matter of preparing 
copy. Twenty-eight years ago a leading printer of New 
York, writing of the receiving of copy, said : " Persuade 
your customer to furnish his own copy, written in ink. 
Avoid writing it for him. If it must be done by you, 
notify him distinctly that he is responsible for its sup- 
posed accuracy as to names, dates, places and figures." 
The object of this injunction was to guard against work 
being thrown back on the printer's hands because of 
errors in the copy that the customer might charge to 
him. While carefulness is just as essential now as it 
was then, it has been learned that there are advantages 
in helping the customer with the copy that more than 
offset the dangers. At the same time, the printer who 
prepares or edits copy for a customer must make the 
customer responsible for the job as finally written, and 
it is always proper for him to request the customer's 
'*0. K." on copy before going ahead, if he does not 
safeguard himself by making it very plain to the 
customer that he cannot be held for any errors in copy, 
after the copy is approved by the customer, he is liable 
to trouble and occasional loss. If the customer is 



40 WRITING ADVERTISING MATTER FOR CUSTOMERS. 

forewarned of this he usually scans the copy more closely, 
and the chances of error, through the unfamiliarity of 
the printer-v/riter with the customer's business, are 
reduced. 

Within a few years some large newspapers have 
employed advertisement editors, whose sole business is to 
see that advertisements are well written. If it is observed 
that any particular advertisers do not use their space to 
good advantage, it is the business of the advertisement 
editor to call on them and make suggestions. The reason 
for the existence of such a functionary is obvious, for, if 
advertisements do not pay, they are sooner or later dis- 
continued, and it is a part of the newspaper publisher's 
business to see that his patrons make money, if he 
would get a share of it. Just so with the job printer. 
If he will see to it that such of his customers as have 
no natural talent for preparing their own copy, are 
assisted, so that their printing will bring them business, 
he will retain their trade and increase it. He will also 
gain trade from those customers who may know how to 
prepare copy, but who are too busy, and who want to 
have some one else write as well as print, some one who 
can be relied upon to take ideas in the rough, and 
carry them out to the completion of a good tasteful, 
trade-stirring piece of printing. Such are willing to pay 
for work on the copy as well as for work on the 
printing. When you show a customer how to make his 
printing profitable, he likes to spend money with you, 
and he will keep on doing it as long as your work brings 
him results. Do not make the mistake of throwing in 
without charge, your work as a writer for customers. 
Small assistance ought not to be charged for specifically, 
but, when a considerable amount of literary work or 



WRITING ADVERTISING MATTER FOR CUSTOMERS. 4 1 

designing is involved, it is best to make a specific 
charge for the same, else the lumping of it with the 
price for printing may cause unfavorable comparisons 
with the prices of others that do not include any writing, 
editing, compiling or arranging. 

The ability to draw or sketch is also worth a great 
deal to the printer who prepares copy or arranges it 
for a customer. By designing and drafting out in pencil 
the headings and titles, and any ornate work connected 
with the job. so as to give the customer a fair idea in 
advance of what it is proposed to furnish him, you are 
more certain of giving satisf^iction and supplying his 
wants. It is always best to supply a design or dummy 
with the copy furnished a customer. Then he is able 
to grasp the whole thing and to judge whether it will 
attain his object. If a pleasing effect is produced at the 
lirst attempt, it is apt to be all plain sailing afterwards 
with that customer. He appreciates you as a man who 
can get up what he wants with onlv a few hints, and 
values you accordingly. 

The writing and editing of advertising matter for 
customers is in line with the idea that it is the printer's 
duty to fill all demands and give customers anything 
of which he sees that they stand in need, and to exact 
a fair profit for such assistance. 



CHAPTER VI. 

TAKING ORDERS. 

To insure satisfaction to every customer, it is essential 
that orders should be correctly taken, so that the work 
may be started rightly. It is impossible to be sure what 
a man wants unless you talk over the ground with him, 
and even when orders are written out quite fully, it is 
best that a little talk go with them to cover points that 
may not be fully understood. When a customer comes 
in and lays down a sheet of copy, saying that he wants 
so many thousand printed at such a time, it is a very 
inefficient office man who lets it go at that, and dis- 
misses the customer with the remark that he will try 
and have it done. He should first examine the copv, 
reading a part or all of it, if in manuscript, in the pres- 
ence of the customer, so as to ascertain whether it is 
all clear and plain. If there is anything that he does 
not understand it can be more easily explained then 
than at any time later. If the copy is reprint, he should 
ask if the arrangement of the type is satisfactory, and 
whether an exact duplicate is required, or whether an 
effort may be made to improve the appearance of the 
job. If the printed job is a good one, it is best to lead 
the customer to duplicate it, because that involves the 
least bother and expense to the printer, but my experi- 
ence is, that it is a mistaken policy to seek the dupli- 
cation of jobs that are below the standard in style and 



TAKING ORDERS. 4} 

arrangement, and that it is better to take the trouble of 
laying out a new display for a customer than to send 
out a job from your office that is below par. 

In some classes of printing, working from manuscript 
copy, it is essential to have an understanding as to 
spelling and punctuation, as customers are occasionally 
notional on these points, and it is the duty of the printer, 
as far as possible, to give them what they want. It has 
been one of the writer's business rules to fmd out just 
what customers want, and let them have it exactly as 
they want it, provided the accommodation will not 
produce work reflecting on the quality of the printing 
turned out by the establishment. The customer who 
does not know what he wants requires to be guided, 
and the printer who is apt at making suggestions for 
such will increase his orders. 

I have known of a large office printing labels for a 
new horse liniment, and spelling the title "Orrion," 
because it was a sort of trade-mark name, so given on 
the copy, the customer being an uneducated man. If 
a thoroughly intelligent man had taken the order, he 
would have told the customer that the correct spelling 
was "Orion," and had the copy altered so that the cus- 
tomer's ignorance might not be exposed to the world 
to the damage of his business, to say nothing of the 
damage to the printer's reputation, if it were known 
that he allowed such an error to go through. 1 have 
known another first-class house to take a reprint order 
for a billhead originally set by some amateur, in exe- 
crable style, and to give the usual instructions with 
reprint work, to follow copy as nearly as possible in 
type and arrangement. The man who took the order 
did not know his business, for if the customer did not 



44 TAKING OPvOERS. 

know that he received a poor job in consequence, others 
might observe it. 

It is impossible to make too sure of a correct under- 
standing of the copy. If it is too long to be read while 
the customer is present, it is desirable to skim through 
it and get his idea in having the thing printed, to under- 
stand just what he is trying to do, to put yourself in 
his place as far as possible, so that you may get the 
spirit of the thing — and then you are in a position to 
carry it out intelligently. It is unwise to give estimates 
without seeing the copy. A firm that estimated on a 
book of 120,000 words, of which the copy was to be 
typewritten, once felt safe in naming a price without 
seeing the copy. They got the job, and after setting up 
about a dozen pages the foreman sent down a request 
for 200 pounds of extra quads. The book was so 
abnormally full of breaklines that it strung out fully 
fifteen per cent, longer than calculated, and there was 
an actual loss of perhaps $50 on producing the job 
according to contract. For further points along this 
line, see the chapter on "Estimating." 

In taking an order every detail must be considered, 
that there may be no doubts during the progress of the 
work as to what is wanted. One cannot be too careful. 
1 have known a customer to state that he wished a job 
set up in "that type," pointing to something on the 
wall. His finger was crooked, and the printer thought 
he meant the type of the adjoining job. No proof was 
shown and the result was a job brought back, a mad 
customer, and a mad printer. The whole difficulty 
would have been saved had the printer been careful 
enough to step forward and have the customer place a 
pencil or pointer exactly on the type desired. For the 



TAKING ORDERS. 45 

credit of the printer, I must say that he learned a lesson 
and never made that mistake again. Two-thirds of the 
disputes over bills arise from little misunderstandings 
like the above in taking the order. The printer who 
takes an order should see that everything is so plain 
that there can be no room for misunderstandings. He 
should consider himself responsible for the copy, just as 
the proof-reader and reviser are responsible later. Some 
printers think that they are smart when they have proved 
to a customer that the error in a job was the custom- 
er's own fault, and that he must pay for reprinting ; 
but, that printer is much smarter whose carefulness 
prevents error on the part of the customer as well as 
on his own part. The latter will gain trade where the 
former loses it. 

If a customer wants expensive work, it is not the 
printer's place to tell him that it is expensive, but s!m;iy 
to give the price. Let the customer be his own judge 
of what he can afford to spend. If he wants work at 
a less price he is usually only too ready to say so. 

It is desirable to obtain all the copy for a job before 
begmning work. This is often essential to the proper lay- 
ing out of the job. If it is impracticable to secure all the 
copy at starting, the customer should be notified that he 
is liable for extra charge if the copy prove more intricate 
or difficult to decipher than that in hand. Where copy 
is blind, it is best to ask the customer to have it type- 
written, calling his attention to the fact that this is likely 
to cost less than will be involved in making the necessary 
corrections later in type. Copy that is written on both 
sides, or carelessly arranged, or that requires considerable 
editorial work on the part of the printer before it is put 
into type, should be handled only on a time charge basis. 



46 TAKING ORDERS. 

When, because of bad copy, or of incomplete direc- 
tions at the start, or of changes of directions while the 
job is in hand, it is evident that the time charges on a 
job will be large, it is desirable that the customer should 
be so informed as soon as possible, that he may be 
prepared for meeting a heavy bill. If this is not done, 
he is very apt to think at the final settlement that he 
has been overcharged. Alterations often cost a great 
deal and make no showing. Where customers receive 
several proofs, and keep on making alterations, it is well 
to mark on each proof the time spent in correcting the 
previous proof, that the customer may realize what a bill 
he is making for himself. 

In an office where a good job ticket is used, the man 
who takes orders should fill out the ticket while the 
customer is there, so that all items as to paper, color of 
ink, size of sheet, time of delivery, etc., may be correctly 
entered and receive the approval of the customer at the 
time. If the job ticket does not cover the whole ground, 
the man who takes orders may keep at his elbow a 
reminder blank containing every point or question to 
be discussed with a customer, and reference to this will 
insure his forgetting nothing. Such a blank might be 
made up like this: 

Points to be Remembered in Taking Orders, 

No. of copies. Look over copy. 

Paper stock. Examine proper names. 

Cover stock. Suggest improvements. 

Size. Proof. 

Ink. Alterations to be charged. 

Binding. Punctuation, spelling, etc. 

Type. Illustrations or plates. 

Style. Detention of press. 

Electrotyping. Embossing. 

Padding. J Standing matter. 



TAKING ORDERS. 47 

It should always be made clear to a customer just 
what a price quoted includes, and for what he may 
expect extra charges. If he distinctly understands at the 
outset that alterations from copy will make an added time 
charge, and detention of press another special charge, 
and standing matter another charge, he can have no 
ground for objection to these items in the bill. If this is 
not made clear to him at the outset some sort of kick is 
almost sure to follow, with friction and perhaps loss to 
the printer. 

It is always well to submit proofs of everything to 
customers. Probably one job in three of which a proof 
is not shown is in some way unsatisfactory. It is also 
wise to send well-printed proofs. This takes time and 
that costs money, and the customer does not want to 
pay for it directly. These facts prevent many printers 
from taking pains to send out good proofs. Neverthe- 
less, it is the best thing to do, and pays in the long run. 
The first proof seen of a job gives the customer his first 
conception regarding it, and that conception remains 
with him as an impression. If the proof is on news- 
paper, with irrregular margins, it looks coarse and crude 
and he does not know why. The result is that he is 
not pleased, and sometimes continues to regard the job 
with disfavor. It is the practice of the Lotus Press to 
print all proofs carefully on a proof press, using coated 
paper and very wide margins. A line is then ruled 
around the job, showing the size of sheet on which it 
is to be printed. This sets off the work, and gives the 
customer a satisfactory idea of the final result. He is 
apt to be pleased and to stay pleased. A customer 
who is favorably impressed with the appearance of a 
first proof is less likely to criticise the job on delivery. 



48 TAKING ORDERS. 

If the first proot does not impress him favorably, he 
sometimes feels irritable toward the job, and finds all 
manner of fault with it after completion just because 
he never did like it. 

The man who is clever at taking orders will always 
have plenty of suggestions ready for improving a job, 
and adding to its business-bringing qualities. This is 
more fully dealt with in the chapter on "How to Talk 
to Customers." The matter of assisting customers in 
the preparation of copy, and of writing and editing 
copy for them, is treated under the caption "Writing 
Advertising Matter, Etc., for Customers." In the present 
chapter I wish to impress upon the printer the advisa- 
bility of taking orders with accuracy and intelligent 
appreciation of the customer's wants, so that the chances 
of dissatisfaction or loss by spoiling the job through 
misunderstandings may be reduced to a minimum. 

Taking an order usually involves naming a time for 
the completion and delivery of a job. The careful order- 
taker should see to it that he does not make more 
promises than he can fulfil. To this end he must keep 
at hand some schedule of the work ordered, unfinished 
and to be delivered, so that he can tell at a glance 
whether it is safe to promise delivery at a certain day 
or hour. Few things damage a printer's trade more 
than the haphazard method of promising delivery at 
any time the customer desires, regardless of facilities for 
completing the work on time. A customer soon learns 
that it is better to place orders with a printer whom he 
can trust to keep his word, even if the delivery time 
is two or three days later than he desires, rather than 
to give his trade to a printer who promises him what- 
ever he demands, and whose word he cnnnot trust. 



TAKING ORDERS. 49 

Another thing for the printer to remember in taking 
orders is that it is bad policy to run down competitors 
in talking with customers. Such talk is in a sort adver- 
tising of the "other fellows," and although the remarks 
made are not to their credit, the point of view of the 
speaker is considered, and ofttimes the direct result of 
talking adversely about a competitor is the sending of 
the customer to his place to let him figure on the 
work. If you cannot say anything kind about your 
brother printers, say nothing about them. If they do 
bad work, fail in their engagements, or cut prices too 
closely, they will have to bear the consequences regard- 
less of what you say about them. If they are good 
printers and good business men it is better to work 
with them to your mutual advantage in building up 
the printing trade than to cross swords with them in 
tearing down trade. Let your customers find out about 
them without any aid from your tongue. 

The duty of the printer in taking orders may be 
summed up thus : To find out just what he is expected 
to produce, to see that the price admits of a fair profit, 
not to promise more than he can carry out, and to start 
the work correctly. 



CHAPTER VII. 

ADVERTISING. 

Advertising is a stepping-stone to success. I don't 
mean to imply that it will naturally follow that because 
a man spends considerable money for advertising he is 
bound to succeed. I know that a very large amount 
of the money spent for advertising is wasted, and in not 
a few cases has been the direct cause of failure. 

If the advertising brings in more money than its cost 
it is good advertising. Or if the traceable returns pay 
only its actual cost, it is even then good advertising. 
A pleased customer is not only a permanent customer 
but is also the best kind of an advertisement, thus the 
good results are cumulative. Consequently, the con- 
tinued orders and successive profits are an added gain 
to the immediate returns and make good advertising 
very productive. The advertising can only be expected 
to bring together the advertiser and the customer, the 
service the customer gets must be the thing that makes 
him a permanent customer. If the service fails to do 
this, or if the customer is disappointed or dissatisfied 
and there is nothing to induce him to continue his 
patronage the advertising will never be profitable. Ad- 
vertising a store, for instance, will not result in profit 
unless there is some reason why people should purchase 
after they are induced to come into the store. Like- 
wise, advertising a printing office will not result in 



ADVERTISING 5 1 

profit unless the printer can offer to prospective cus- 
tomers some advantage over his competitor, and thus 
secure the orders. To know what inducements to ad- 
vertise involves a study of what the customers expect 
from their printer, and then arranging one's business to 
meet these requirements. To do this uniformly requires 
careful and close attention to business. In this way 
advertising is a stepping-stone to success. It induces the 
iidvertiser to give more thought to all the details of his 
business, and the successful advertiser is the one who 
gives more intelligent attention to his business than his 
competitors. This careful and close attention to business 
coupled with the cumulative results of good advertising 
will win success. Some lines of business make all 
their profit on the one sale; this, however, is not the 
case in the printing business. They have an almost 
unlimited field to draw trade from, while the printers' 
territory is restricted — usually to his own immediate 
vicinity — therefore, the printer must aim to make a per- 
manent customer of all the trade he gets. 

If you cannot offer some inducement do not advertise. 

If there are good reasons why people should give 
you the preference with their orders, advertise it. It is 
n grave mistake to suppose that a cheap price is the 
greatest inducement a printer can offer. I believe the 
crude expression "cheap and nasty" originated in refer- 
ence to printing. As the two terms are almost insepa- 
rable, it would be an insult to the intelligence of the 
business community to claim that price is the only 
consideration to the merchant when placing an order 
for printing, and my experience in the business has 
taught me that there are other inducements which 
vastly outweigh this one. A careful study of the field 



32 ADVERTISING 

will convince any one that the largest and most pros- 
perous printers everywhere are those who get a good 
price for their work. They are not the cheap printers. 
Cheap printing is usually poor printing and must be 
cheap because it cannot command a higher price; it is 
not worth any more than its cost and frequently is not 
worth even that. Cheap printing is never profitable 
printing, and those who make a specialty of cheap print- 
ing, and depend purely on a price inducement, never 
become successful printers. 

Printers as a class are not good advertisers. They 
seem to believe that advertising is a good thing for 
other people, but not for themselves. The printing 
business is one that will respond to advertising, because 
the pleased customer continues to deal with the printer. 
Once you gain a new customer, you are apt to hold 
his trade as long as you continue to satisfy him, and 
it is not a matter of getting only the profit from a 
single order. For this reason it pays to advertise print- 
ing, even though the expense seems to be considerable. 
Through advertising it is just as possible to make a 
customer of the man whose work amounts to several 
thousand dollars a year as it is to reach one who does 
not use so much, and it is because of this fact that it 
pays to advertise liberally. 

As to the best methods of advertising printing there 
is no one particular way. There is no one method of 
advertising anything successfully. "All roads lead to 
Rome." In order to get the best results advertising' 
methods and mediums must be varied. No two people 
are alike. What appeals to one falls flat with another. 
A handsome booklet may secure the attention of one 
person, while a comic skit or a useful blotter will please 



ADVERTISING 33 

another. In order to reach all it is absolutely necessary 
to resort to various plans and styles. Let your adver- 
tising be frequent and varied. Circulars, booklets, blot- 
ters, calendars, novelties, are all good. A splendid plan 
is to prepare several at once and have a definite time 
for their distribution. Prepare them when you have an 
idle press or when your compositors are not busy ; in 
this way the work will not conflict with the work of 
your customers, and will likev/ise be quite inexpensive. 
Let your advertising campaign be conducted system- 
atically. Don't neglect it because you happen to be 
busy, and don't leave the sending out of the advertise- 
ments for a dull time. Let it be part of some one s 
duty to attend to this and see to it that it is done 
systematically, carefully and regularly. The preparation 
of the advertisements may be done in dull times if 
several are prepared at once, so as to reduce the cost 
of production, but do not let anything stand in the way 
of their circulation. 

In large cities the least productive advertising for a 
printer is advertising in newspapers. A printers cus- 
tomers are mostly local, and the circulation of a news- 
paper spreads over a vast territory that the printer 
cannot hope to do business in, although he must pay 
the full advertising rates. It would consequently be a 
mistake to do much advertising of this kind, because 
of the unavoidable waste. 

Straight personal appeals, under full letter postage, is 
the best way to send out printers' advertising matter. 
Compile a list of names of people whom you know to 
be users of printing and with whom you would like 
to do business. Tell them about your advantages and 
tell them whv it would be to their interest to send 



54 ADVERTISING 

their orders to you. Tell them as you would tell them 
if they were sitting beside your desk and you were 
talking to them. To make up a proper list of names 
may require considerable time and some expense, but 
it IS worth all it costs; keep hammering away at the 
same names, adding new names whenever there is a 
chance. 

Occasionally send some kind of an announcement 
or reminder to your regular customers. Don't neglect 
them. Let them know that you are alive, or some 
other printers advertising may win them over from 
you ; customers like to know that their printer has enter- 
prise, and when the opportunity presents itself they will 
be very apt to recommend you to some acquaintance. 

Put your imprint on your work whenever it is 
possible. This may be quite small and unobtrusive, but 
if your work is worthy of an imprint insist on having 
it appear. 

Make your own announcements tasteful. 

Inclose self-addressed envelopes in your correspond- 
ence. 

If you do a particularly nice piece of printing send 
samples of it to people who are likely to be interested. 

Classify your samples in separate sample books and 
keep duplicate samples to send by mail when necessary. 

. Pad your waste paper and distribute to your custom- 
ers with your ad. on the back of each pad. 

Put a neatly printed blotter in every package of office 
stationery. 

Remind your customers when it is time to get out a 
holiday announcement or seasonable circular. 

Distribute "Early Closing Cards" in summer, and 
" Please Close the Door" cards in winter. 



ADVERTISING 5'> 

Have a neat and comfortable business ofifke in whicii 
to receive your customers. Don't expect them to stand 
up in front of a home-made counter or transact their 
business through a hole in a partition. 

These are just a few suggestions. 

Following will be found a variety of advertisements 
with suggestions for their get up. These advertisements 
are selected from a large collection that 1 have used, and 
are given here because they have proven successful. 
Some of them may [need to be changed to meet certain 
local requirements or for other personal reasons : 

Chrysanthemums. Are Now in Season. 

When trying to get up a nice, attractive announcement 
card or circular, has it ever occurred to you to have it 
printed in the colors of the particular flower in season ? 
We make a careful study of color and design, and when 
a customer wants a handsome piece of printing, we have 
no difficulty in pleasing him. In this special line we have 
few competitors — it is a labor of love with us — a sort of 
hobby. It does not cost any more to do a thing correctly 
than to do it badly ; it is simply the knowing how ; and 
this " knowing how " is as much a matter of education 
as of instinct ; we have been educated to it ; besides having 
a natural talent for it. 

If you are a lover of things beautiful, let us apply the 
principles of beauty to your printing. 

[The above was a circular, 6x9, printed on a delicate primrose coated 
paper ; the caption had a two-color initial with chrysanthemum design, 
printed in Milon green and gold, the letter-press was printed in a green 
tint ] 

The Parrot Ate the Proofs. 

A customer reports that his parrot ate our proofs. That's 

a bird. 

He must have heard the flattering comments on the iob 

and thought it was something to eat. 

Our customers are unceasing in their praises of our printing. 

Have we ever had an order from you ? 

[Enameled card, 5x7; cut of parrot at side, printed in red, blue and 
gold ; circular matter in same colors ] 



^6 ADVERTISING 

A Few " Nevers '' 

For those in search of culture and profit, and who are 

about going to the country on their vacation : 
Never smack the lips or the children while eating. 
Never pick your teeth or a quarrel at table. Both should 

be picked in the back yard. 
Never fasten your napkin around your neck. It is now 

customary to wear a collar there. 
Never make a pun at table (or anywhere else). 
Never drum with your fingers on the table. You can 

make more noise by beating a tattoo on your plate 

with your knife. 
Never smoke cigars while eating soup. 
Never remark "1 see Hash Wednesday is here again," 

when croquettes are being served 
Never put your knife in your mouth. If there is no room 

on the table for it, balance it on the shoulder of the 

person next to you. 
Never put your elbow on the table, if at a loss where to 

keep it put it in your pocket. 
Never carry fruit or bonbons away from the table. If you 

want something substantial for a late lunch, sequester 

a turkey drum stick in your inside pocket. 
Never scrape your plate or tilt it to obtain the last drop 

of anything it contains. The dishwasher is paid to 

do that. 
Never stretch your feet under the table so as to touch 

those of your vis-a-vis. He may have corns which 

object to familiarity. 
And last, but 5y no means least : Never, never, never, 

place your orders for printing or lithographing before 

coming to us. 

[Circular, lo x \2]4, black ink, gray antique cover paper, thick enough 
to hang up.] 

Not How Much is Said, 

But how attractively it is presented. It is surprising to 
see how many business men use printing that not only 
does them no good, but really does them harm. 
A little skill in bringing forward the important features in 
a pleasingly attractive manner is often worth hundreds of 
dollars to an advertiser. We have set many a business 
man on more attractive and profitable ways. Maybe we 
can be helpful to you. We do printing of all kinds. 

(Large manilla mailing c:\Xi\, 11x7; cut in orange, matter in blue, j 



ADVIiRTlSlNT. 57 

A Valentine. 

The love that hides— too modest for to speak, 
Is sometimes twice as strong for seeming weak ; 
Hear then, what pansies whisper soft to you. 
Your lover, dear, is shy but always true. 

We feel that some sort of an explanation ought to go 
with this sentimental outburst. We have courted you for 
a long time, and although satisfied with the result, we 
have never before had the courage to express ourselves so 
plainly, because we feared it might be considered out of 
place during business hours ; but we trust we will be 
excused for giving way to our feelings during this season 
of gush and sentiment. This is St. Valentine's Day, and 
Leap Year, and we propose to take advantage of it in 
spite of our natural modesty. We are so accustomed to 
writing up prosy advertisements that we frequently find 
ourselves telling our best girl that the only place to have 
printing done is at The Lotus Press, 23d Street near 
Sixth Avenue, and so-forth, and so-forth, when we really 
intended to tell her how much we loved her and what a 
dear little creature she is, and how empty this world 
would be without her, and *Miow we long to lay our 
head in her lap and have a good cry " — and perhaps it 
is safer to write her in a business strain after the severe 
experience of "Bunnie" and "Baby," and save the H's 
and K's for cur business announcements, and keep our 
$46,000 in our inside pocket for a rainy day — the printing 
business may not always be as good as it is just now, 
who knows? 

And now since we have explained our reasons for sending 
this loving epistle and made so bold as to tell our ac- 
quaintances how much we adore them, and how sincerely 
we appreciate their favors (orders), we extend a cordial 
invitation to them to come and see us (when they need 
anything in our line). 
With bushels of H's and K's and K. M. Q:"- 

We remain as ever. 

[Circular, 6x10, printed in red ink, cut of pansy set at the side of 
the poetry. Sent out on St. Valentine's Day, " H's and K's," "Baby" 
and " Bunnie," etc., were expressions indulged in by a man who was 
sued for divorce at the time and who was mulcted for $46,000. The 
case was much discussed in the papers and was familiar to every one 
This kind of advertising will do occasionally, if it is a timely hit, and 
especially if it is followed up with something of a more serious nature.] 



5b ADVERTISING 

Mr. Candidate : 

You are losing votes if your printing is being delayed. 
You can't expect big meetings if you don't let people 
know there is to be a meeting. You can't expect to be 
elected if you don't get your friends enthusiastic. Your 
friends won't be enthusiastic unless you are. You ought 
to keep hammering away at them with a new circular 
almost every day. If you have a printer who can do the 
work right for you, and do it quickly, and who is treating 
you squarely, stick to him — he is your best friend. But, 
if you are having disappointments of any kind with your 
printing, bring your orders here and get the very best 
service that money can buy. Don't send your order by 
a hanger-on who will expect a commission — better pay 
him liberally for his trouble and know that you are getting 
all you are paying for. We pay no commissions and pre- 
fer to deal direct. 
Are you using as much printing as you should? 

[Letter circular, sent to political candidates as soon as nominations 
were made.] 

We make a specialty of church printing and would be 
pleased to have your order for Christmas programmes. 
Among the ciiurches we print for are the following : 

All Souls Church 

Bergen Reformed Church 

Church of Divine Paternity 

Church of the Holy Communion 

Church of The Puritans 

Crescent Avenue Presbyterian Churcii 

First Presbyterian Church 

Fifth Avenue Baptist Church 

Grace M. E. Church 

Marble Collegiate Church 

Madison Avenue Reformed Church 

Reformed Church of Walden 

St. Andrew's Church 

St. Mark's Church 

St. Paul's Church 

West End Collegiate Church 

West Presbyterian Church 

You are invited to call and look at samples of our W(xk. 
[F^rinted on a postal card, and sent to all churches in the city.] 



ADVF.RTISINC, S9 

Whoever thou art that enterest this Church leave it not 

without kneeling dov/n and saying a prayer to God for 

thyself, for those who minister, and for those who worship 

here. 

Surely the Lord is in this place. 

[A vestibule card, size 1 1 x 8}4', two-color initial in red and gold, rest 
•f matter printed in red and black ; set in ecclesiastical style, large 
Tudor type ; sent to ministers of all churches in the city ; extremely 
small imprint at bottom of card. With this was sent the following 
circular letter: 

The Lotus Press .sends its compliments and begs you to 
accept these two Vestibule Cards, as they are peculiarly 
appropriate for that purpose 

The Lotus Press makes a specialty of Church Printing 
They have a large number of samples to show, such as 
Programmes, Service Lists, Calendars, Cards, etc. 
There are times when the need is felt for some excep- 
tionally attractive printing. 
That is the time to visit the Lotus Press.] 



Let's Get Acquainted. 

Almost every business house will send out some kind of 
announcement or circular for the Fall Trade, and nearly all 
will want to do it nicely, and probably wish they could 
get some real assistance or valuable suggestion. 
Those who will take the trouble of calling at our place 
will find a wealth of ideas to select from, and will get 
the help of our best judgment in the matter Others who 
find it inconvenient to call will receive suggestions by 
return mail if they will send us the copy of their circular 
or announcement, or whatever they require. 
We do all kinds of printing, but call special attention to 
Fall advertising in this circular, as it is probably the thing 
that is wanted at this moment. 

[Circular, printed on double sheet, 5x8; brown ink, white paper. 
Stme caption on the envelope in large type.] 

Spring Announcements. 

A crying baby at a public meeting is like a good sugges- 
tion — it ought to be carried out. We wish to suggest 
that now is the time to issue a nice Spring Announce- 
ment, and if you make up your mind to carry out this 
suggestion let us do the work for you. 

[Card, 4)4 x iK; to ft baronial envelope ; printeJ in two colors | 



6o ADVERTISING 

Thk Wrong Way. 

The wrong way to buy printing is the " cheap " way. 
If printing is to build business, it must be good printing. 
Good enough or pretty fair won't do. The best only is 
good enough. (We do the best work.) If you strain at 
a dollar and swallow a mean job — some do — your adver- 
tising cannot be bringing the best results. Good money 
pays for good work — we do the best work. We know 
how — know five years m.ore how than other printers. 
We mix brains with the ink — the printers' ink. Booklets 
are trade-fetchers — leaflets, folders, circulars are money- 
makers. We estimate if you ask us — and you might 
better ask us. 

[Circular, 4% x 1 i ; amber paper, green ink ; caption made in 
reverse so as to read backwards. ! 

Don't 

deal with a house where you have to explain your busi- 
ness to an errand boy, crane your neck to talk to an 
insolent clerk behind a glass partition, or stand in a little 
enclosure and lean your elbows on a counter while 
transacting your business. If you experience any of these 
annoyances, that is proof that you are not a customer of 
ours, so send your next order here and see the difference. 
Your work will be done as you want it, when you want 
it, and at the right price. Try it. It will be a pleasure 
to you, and money in your pocket besides. 

[Circular, 5j4 x 8 ]4, white paper, black inkj. 

Your Printer is Prosperous. 

A year ago when there was a general stagnation we were 
busy. We said then if times were normal we would not 
be able to handle all our work Times are now normal — 
our prediction was correct. We have been compelled to 
take three times as much working room as we had before, 
besides adding very largely to our type and press facilities 
Your orders will receive the same prompt and careful 
attention as in the past, and with your co-operation we 
hope to be compelled to spread to even greater propor- 
tions in the not very distant future. 

We are recognized as the best printers, and in time may 
be the largest. 

[Circular, 5>^ x 8>^ ; printed on blue tinted paper, with dark blue 
ink ; envelope to match.] 



ADVERTISING 6 1 

Wouldn't 

a special "circular or holiday announcement benefit your 

business ? 

We will help get it up for you if you wish it. 

Our advertising pays us — we believe we can help make 

yours pay, too. 

If you will call on us you will probably decide to act on 

this suggestion. We have arranged a special display for 

the occasion. You will be interested. 

[Decorative circular, 3x11, legal fold ; ornamentation in agate tint, 
matter in agate ; primrose card.] 

.; Gentlemen : 

The enclosed piece of printing was done for a house in 

your line and is sent to you as a sample of our general 

work, with a view of making a customer of you. 

We treat this work in an effective way. We do not 

overlook the commercial needs, nor do we lose sight of the 

artistic possibilities. We also do all kinds of plain printing. 

We aim to meet all legitimate competition in price and 

give greater value for the money expended. 

We trust you will keep our card before you and remember 

us with your next order. 

[Circular, with sample of handsome booklet, sent to other houses in 
the same line of business. Our card enclosed.] 

We Are Bound This Shall Be Re(a)d. 

Not simply 
■' Striking the iron while it is hot," 
But— 
By striking make it hot. 

That is the way to successful advertising. Some of the 
business men in this neighborhood are napping. Persist- 
ent advertising indicates enthusiasm. Get out a circular 
this week, a folder next week, then a booklet, etc., etc. 
There is no printer who can do it better for you than 
The Lotus Press. We put enthusiasm into our business, 
and can give your printing that touch of originality that 
will make it effective. A glance at some of our samples 
may give you an idea. You are invited to call. 

[Triple fold, 6x11, printed on a Turkey red cardboard, with this 
caption on the outside centre fold : " We are bound this shall be 
re(a)d." This little couplet on the outside end fold: 

No wild enthusiast ever yet could rest, 

'Till half mankind were like himself possess'd. 

— CozL'per.] 



62 ADVERTISING 

One of Our Many 

Pleased customers wrote recently : '* I heartily appreciate 
the rare and admirable qualities of your work. You have 
resolved printing into a fine art. I know not which to 
admire most — your high standards of excellence, your 
tasteful combination of type and color, or skillful press- 
work." In this connection we wish to say, if you are not 
entirely pleased with the work you are getting in this 
line, we would like to render you this same service. We 
desire to state, also, that we have added a new feature 
— Photography. If you want to issue an illustrated leaflet 
or circular we will take a photograph of whatever may be 
required for the purpose. You simply write the copy — 
we now "press the button" and do all the rest. We 
are centrally located, and trust we may have the pleasure 
of a personal call from you, 

[Circular, 8^4 hy ii, natural coated paper, two-color initial, gold 
and brown, type matter in brown ; cut in lower left hand corner, 
photographer looking through camera, camera mounted on tripod, aimed 
at the reader of the circular.] 

Booklets are considered most profitable advertisements, 
but m order to produce the very best results they must 
be neat and artistic. 

An ordinary booklet will be likely to make the same im- 
pression as a slovenly representative, but if it combines 
artistic taste with good language your booklet will be a 
success. 

We make artistic booklets — the "successful" kind. 
We make this kind because it pays us as well as our 
customers. We make more profit at it than most print- 
ers, though we do not charge any more than they — not 
as much as some. The reason is, that we know how 
and are especially equipped for it. It is our specialty. If 
you are a believer in this kind of advertising we can be 
of service to you. We take pride in our place and are 
not asliamed to have prospective customers call on us. 
You are invited. (If it is not convenient for you to call, 
invite us.) 

[Printed on the office letter head, in typewriter type, violet ink ; 
signed with a pen,] 

Reme.mber 

August is the time to think of ordering printing for Fall. 

[Baronial size, hand-made deckel edge paper, envelope to match ; 
printed in three colors ; trade mark in lower left hand corner.] 



ADVERTISING t>} 

Attractive Printing. 

A little illustration will sometimes add interest to a card, 
circular or booklet. We have many useful little cuts 
which our customers can have the use of without extra 
cost. We have a very large collection of ornaments and 
initial letters which help to make our printing very attractive. 
We know how to use them to good advantage. 
Our prices are reasonable. 

[Circular, 9 x 12 ; cuts all around the margin, printed in lighi 
brown^ body of circular in agate.] 

To Our Customers. 

It will probably be a source of pleasure to you to learn that 
we are exhibitors at the Architectural League Exhibition, 
now being held at the American Fine Arts Building, 
177th Street near Broadway, and that we are the only 
printers represented The iionor conferred speaks strongly 
for the merits of our work, and is, indeed, ''a feather in 
our cap." If you visit the exhibition Eyou will find our 
frame in the West Gallery (No. 245). 

[Enameled card to fit No. 6 envelope, printed in red and black.] 

We Want Your Endorsement. 

If we were candidates for an elective office we are confi- 
dent that we could count on youi hearty support, but as 
we have no political aspirations we trust you will always 
bear us in mind as "High Grade Printers." To this end 
we shall endeavor to merit your endorsement. 

Yours for success. 

[Card, to fit No. 7 envelope, printed in red and black ; cut of bal- 
lot box in upper right hand corner; sent out just before election time.] 

A Customer Writes : 

"You treat your customers better than most people treat 
their intimate friends." 

Letters of appreciation are always very gratifying to us. 
Gains that come as a matter of premium and are not 
earned, are apt to lack permanence. Many of our custom- 
ers have dealt with us from the beginning of our business 
career — over thirteen years. If we did not earn their con- 
fidence, and after earning, maintain it, the results would 
not have been so lasting. 

[Card, to fit No. 6 envelope, printed in two colors.] 



64 ADVERTISING 

The Lotus Press 

Invites you to a novel exhibition of Art Papeteries, Fold- 
ers and Printing (suggestions for Easter and Spring An- 
nouncements), from March 27th to April 3d, i to 4 p. m. 
daily. 140 West Twenty-third Street, New York City. 

[Printed on an invitation card, card addressed to individual, sent 
out three weeks before Easter ; large line of appropriate samples from 
all stock houses.] 



Heard Us Before. 

We're talking again, talking to the hard-to-please people 
who like particular printing. We are Particular Printers ; 
we put in that little extra nice touch that pleases you. 
Be the job big or little — its big enough to be well done. 
Our Particular Department is our whole shop. Ask us to 
prove it ; we can make you believe that Our best is The 
best. 

[Large mailing card, 9x4; printed on 8-ply yellow blank. On the 
address side a large headline, " I've heard that before."] 



As schools are frequently judged by their catalogues and 
other printed matter, we desire to call your attention to 
our special facilities for high-grade printing of all kinds. 
If the difference between a nicely printed catalogue and 
one poorly done influences only a few people, it more 
than pays for the difference in cost ; and that it will so 
influence, there can be no question. We will be pleased 
to look into the matter with you if you contemplate issu- 
ing a catalogue for the coming term. 

[Printed on office letter heads, in typewriter type, violet ink; signed 
with a pen ; sent to private schools.] 



" Drat the Printer," 

Is a remark frequently indulged in, that might just as 
well be avoided. There is no reason why your printing 
should not be done on time ; and well done, too. Do 
you suppose that such corporations as the Cigarette 
Manufacturers or the Whiskey Trust would tolerate any 
house short of "first-class and reliable?" We do their 
work and would like to do yours. If you use any print- 
ing it will pay you to communicate with us (for manv 
reasons). 

^, black ink, white paper] 



ADVhK'llSlNG b=y 



A Roman Typk. 



•There is a tide in the affairs of men, 
Which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune : " but— 

Ye gods ! how a dilatory printer can upset one's plans ! 

Are you handicapped in this way? 

When the successful man finds that he needs a thing, lie 

wants it at once, and should be in a position to get it. 

This is especially so with printing. We can give it to you 

when you want it. 

We are printers to some of the largest concerns in this 

country, and are anxious to add you to our list. We 

cater to the wants of successful men. 

We have the type, necessary facilities and ability for prompt 

service. Send us your work — it will pay you. 

[The size of this circular was 8^x i i ; the caption in a large bold 
Roman type, and a metal type glued on at the side of the caption ; 
heavy ledger paper, black ink ; enclosed in a No. lo envelope] 



Will it please the eye and hold the attention ? That is 
the test we apply to all printing of an advertising nature. 
Our practical experience as printers and advertisers, and 
our art education, qualify us to decide correctly. When 
it passes our criticism you will probably find no improve- 
ments to suggest. We can help you make your printing 
and pamphlets more profitable. 

[Folder. 4x0, with attractive cut on outside page ; printed in old 
gold, black and tint.] 



To OuK Customers. 

The long promised wave of prosperity appears to be 
approaching. Put aside your fishing rods and get ready 
for business. We trust you have enjoyed your vacation, 
and we hope to be remembered when you are ordering 
your printing. 
Yours for success through good printing. 

The Glad Hand. 

The pleasure of greeting to many ot our patrons in the 
past few days prompts us to extend a hearty "how-do'' 
to all. When you are in our neighborhood come in and 
see us. When you need anything in our line don't forget us. 

[Two advertising blotters ; sent out at the end of the Summer vaca- 
tion. Illustrated with cuts.] 



66 ADVERTISING 

How About A Thanksgiving Announcement. 

An appropriate circular or card for Thanksgiving Day 
would be a very effective advertisement for many lines of 
business. They should, of course, be gotten out immedi- 
ately or at least within the next week. We have appro- 
priate illustrations, and will give our prompt attention to 
Thanksgiving orders. The above is simply a suggestion. 
Remember we do all kinds of printing and do it well and 
reasonable. 

[A four-page circular, 5>^ x 8}4, filled with Thanksgiving cuts, 
printed in green ink on yellow coated paper.] 



The Lotus Press, Printers of Work Other Printers Can't 
Print. 

Our best success is with those who leave their work to 
our taste. We aim to make every job profitable to olh' 
customers. Our prices are reasonable. 
Every order receives special treatment. 

Commercial Printing, 
Catalogues, 
Booklets, 
Brochures, etc., etc. 

Our work has received most flattering comments from the 
leading advertising papers and printers' trade magazines. 
We invite orders from users of particular printing. 

[Ornamental circular, 5>^x8>^ ; printed on vegetable parchment 
•paper, attached to a purple cover with a fancy brass fastener, tied with 
yellow silk floss, which was secured to the cover with sealing wax ; 
addressed to the individual with gold writing fluid.] 



Richards is a Man 

Of large experience and a " close buyer." His printing is 
done by The Lotus Press, 140 West 23d Street, New 
York City. If you want to know more about the Lotus 
Press ask Mr. Richards. If you want a practical demon- 
stration of what they can do, don't bother Mr. Richards 
but send an order — it will pay you. The successful man 
profits by the experience of others. (Profit by the experi- 
ence of Mr. Richards.) 

[Circular, 5J^ x 8}4i black ink, white paper. Richards was an en- 
terprising advertiser in our locality.] 



ADVERTISING 67 

A series of postal cards, each with appropriate illustration. A tint 
block printed over the entire back of the postals so as to make them 
•look different from the regular postals received in the business man's 
mail. 

Pamphlets. 

Your valuable time should not be taken up in furnishing 
ideas for your printer. You are not a printer, and he 
should be competent to relieve you of this annoyance. 
The success of a pamphlet depends on the taste and 
judgment displayed in the designing and type-setting, and 
it is in this part of the work that we particulariy excel. 
Send us the order for your next pamphlet, booklet or cat- 
alogue and let us show you what we can do. 

Art in Printing. 

A touch of art improves a piece of printing. It adds a 
little to the expense, but it more than pays for the differ- 
ence in the cost. A whole life devoted to the study of 
good printing, together with an art education, has qualified 
us to do the work in a way that will make it profitable 
to you. Send us the order for your next catalogue or 
pamphlet, and let us show you wherein we excel. 

Luck in Business. 

Our knowledge of good printing is the result of a prac- 
tical art education, combined with years of experience in 
handling the work of successful business houses. There 
is no guess work about it ; it has been, and is, a constant 
schooling. It is probable that an order for a catalogue 
or pamphlet would make a customer of you and relieve 
you of much annoyance thereafter, as it would demonstrate 
our efficiency and secure your confidence. When you 
are ready let us look into it with you. 

A Touch of Art. 

Often the mere setting up of the type in an attractive and 
pleasing style, or the addition of a few illustrations, or a 
more tasteful cover is the only change necessary to make 
an unsuccessful pamphlet a profitable one. With our prac- 
tical knowledge of art we are enabled to do it tight. A 
mere suggestion from us may be of value to you. On 
your next catalogue or pamphlet let us show you wherein 
we excel. 



68 ADVERTISING 

Aiming at You. 

If you are a large user of printing you cannot afford to 
waste time with incompetent printers. We want your 
particular work, and while suggestions are of course valu- 
able, we do not expect you to fuss with the details of 
arrangement. If you will send us the copy for an estimate 
we will show you what we will make of it. An art edu- 
cation and a life devoted to the careful study of good 
printing are our advantages. Now is a good time to 
prepare pamphlets or catalogues for early Fall business. 

Now. 

At this season many orders are placed for catalogues and 
pamphlets. Practical ideas, together with our art education 
and knowledge of good printing, enables us to cut off 
the waste-basket circulation and make the investment 
more profitable to you. If you will send us the copy for 
your next catalogue or pamphlet we will show you 
wherein we excel. During July and August you could 
probably give the work more attention than at any other 
time. 



Critics. 



Competent critics have said of us, "there are no better 
printers than these." We are prepared to arrange with a 
few more large users of good printing and can give them 
the kind of service and advice in printing that they expect 
to get from a first-class lawyer in legal matters. Business 
men who do not wish to experiment for the sake of sav- 
ing a dollar or two are invited to consult us when they 
require good printing of any kind. We -believe we can 
be a great help. 



Booklets. 



When we take an order for a booklet, we make up an 
artist's dummy — that is, a hand-painted sample copy, which 
shows exactly what the finished work will look like. We 
do not expect our customers to furnish the ideas. Our 
life study of fine printing and our art education enable us 
to get it up in a way that will insure its being read, 
and make a favorable impression. If you like this way 
and need a booklet, consult us. You have more to gain 
than we. 



ADVERTISING 69 

Experiments are Costly. 

The class of printing we do cannot be had elsewhere. 
At the present time we stand out distinct and alone. 
Each succeeding booklet we print is probably better than 
the one before. We never expect to reach the limit of 
excellence until the very last ''job" is done. It is impos- 
sible lO give prices for catalogue printing without seeing 
the copy and knowing the size. We would like to quote 
rates to every good advertiser who will write and ask 
for them. 

Fall Printing. 

Most any printer will take a big price for his work if he 
can get it. Don't pay the price unless you get the value. 
There are many printers who will charge you as much as 
the Lotus Press will. There is no printer who will give 
you as good work. That is a sweeping statement, and 
we mean it to be. 

We are practically without competition. Nobody else is 
doing the sort of work tliat we do. Nobody else has the 
same equipment for it that we have. Nobody else is giv- 
ing their minds to it as we are. Nobody else has had the 
training for it that we have had. You cannot get Lotus 
Press work anywhere but at the Lotus Press. We put 
art and brains and carefulness into every piece of work 
that goes out of the place. 
How about your Fall Printing? 

The reader of this chapter will find it necessary to 
qualify himself to carry out the inducements that are 
offered if he intends to use these advertisements, other- 
wise his advertising will not pay. Some people labor 
under the delusion that advertising will pay even though 
the thing advertised has no particular merit, it will 
certainly never pay to do this in the printing business 
— or any other legitimate business. 

It is claimed by many printers that there is no special 
inducement to offer in this business, and that there- 
fore it is not a business that will respond to advertis- 
ing. A careful study of the examples on the preceding 



70 ADVERTISING 

pages will reveal a number of special inducements and 
suggest others. As I stated in the beginning of this 
chapter, good advertising requires careful and close, at- 
tention to business, and will rouse the advertiser to- 
give more thought to all the details of his business. 
Good advertising involves enthusiasm, and enthusiasm 
is an indispensable element of success. Enthusiasm is 
contagious, its influence will spread over the entire es- 
tablishment and stimulate the whole force. It will 
prompt customers to follow the example set, thus in- 
creasing the business. 



CHAPTER VIll. 

HOW TO TALK TO CUSTOMERS. 

The education of customers to an appreciation of 
good printing and its commercial value is a science 
worthy of study. The printer who would prosper 
should be a salesman, or have one in his business 
office who is gifted as a salesman. There is more 
money to be made by proper talk at the desk than by 
much fingering at the case. I do not wish to be under- 
stood as advocating the persuasive, jollying talk by 
which some salesmen secure orders — I mean brainy 
talk that appeals to common sense, and invites the 
customer to take that which is better for himself and 
better for the printer. 

The most common failing among buyers of printing 
is that the desire to get it at a low price leads them 
10 beat down the printer, with the result that he gives 
work that is not of the highest excellence. One of the 
most serious failings among master printers is that they 
submit to this sort of thing, and that so many strive 
all the time to lower their prices in order to meet the 
customer's demands. This practice in business is all 
wrong. The only right way — for the good of the 
printer himself, for the good of the craft, and for the 
customer also — is to talk for better and finer work, 
first, last, and all the time. 



72 HOW TO TALK TO CUSTOMERS. 

Cheap printing always presents so many weak 
points for attack that it is comparatively easy for the 
printer to prove to his customer the uselessness of 
spending his money for anything but a high grade of 
work. The wonder to me is that all printers do not 
persistently and everlastingly drum it into the customer 
that cheap printing is profitless ; and yet 1 know that 
a very great number of printers seem to expend more 
effort in the suicidal endeavor to cheapen work for the 
public than in praiseworthy exertions to upbuild it. 
The notion is so unbusinesslike, that it is hard to under- 
stand why self-interest has not dictated the wiser course 
to all. If I could have the ear of every printer in 
America for just one half minute, I think that 1 could 
do more good for the trade by shouting "Talk up the 
quality of your work, rather than its cheapness ! " — than 
by almost any other sentence that could be framed. 

Continually impress upon your customer that issuing 
cheap printing is like wearing cheap clothes ; that it 
brings only discredit, and destroys the power of printers' 
ink to build up and increase trade. The standing of a 
firm is often judged by the quality of the printing that 
it sends out ; the character of their goods is pretty sure 
to be estimated as the equivalent of the printing. If 
this were not so, the expensive catalogues and price 
lists often seen would never be issued. The Gorham 
Company a few years ago issued an illustrated catalogue 
on which the printer's bill was $iio,ooo. The printer 
who secured the contract doubtless knew how to talk 
as well as how to print. Suppose that he had been a 
poor talker, or had tried to give them a catalogue at a 
low figure, he would then have lost a profitable job. 
;ind the credit of turning out a superb piece of work- 



HOW TO TALK TO CUSTOMERS. 7^ 

manship that was probably worth several thousand 
dollars to him as an advertisement. 

It is more often possible to talk a customer into 
using a better quality of work than originally intended 
than many printers suppose. A good way when fig- 
uring on a new piece of work is to make the calcula- 
tions and quote a price on a plain job, and then to 
suggest to the customer, "Would it not be worth 
your while to spend a little more, and secure a better 
effect.^ If It is worth while to spend $soo in getting 
out s.ooo of these catalogues, is it not well to add 
another $100 to make them beautiful and artistic, so 
that they may attract attention, be more widely read, 
And sell more goods .^" If this sort of talk is followed 
lip by the exhibition of samples of fine work, and with 
references to the greater impression that is made on 
possible buyers by the fine job, a customer very 
frequently may be influenced to go higher than he 
originally intended. By such means not only does the 
printer secure a job better worth having, but he elimi- 
nates the chances of the work's being given to some 
cheap printer who is cutting prices, because he has 
impressed on the customer the idea that quality is what he 
wants, and that he must pay more to get that quality. 

A good level-headed salesman in the counting-room 
will "talk up" every $1,000 dollars worth of work 
offered his firm to $1,200, earning his own salary in 
this one item of judicious talk. It pays to have as an 
estimator a man who is a good talker ; one who can 
read men and appeal to the qualities that he recognizes 
in them. Intelligence of this sort is hard to buy, and 
proprietors mostly have to furnish it themselves or go 
without. 



74 HOW TO TALK TO CUSTOMERS. 

It is well to lay out a regular system of talk for 
customers, to plan ahead all the arguments that can be 
brought to bear upon them to increase the quality of 
their printing, and to allow the printer a fair margin 
of profit. The application of these arguments must 
necessarily be very varied, depending upon the work, 
the customer, and the surrounding circumstances. But 
the effort to develop work by talking should never be 
relaxed, for it is a very valuable factor in the develop- 
ment of trade. Good talk often builds up a printery, 
while the lack of it may allow a good business to 
deteriorate. 

The printer should never allow the assumption that 
he cannot compete with other firms in the trade. The 
instant this idea appears in his talk, the customer is apt 
to think that the other place is a good one for him to 
go to when he wants the real thing. Talk as if you 
had the best facilities, keeping any weaknesses of your 
plant to yourself; talk with enthusiasm, and then you 
will convince. Whatever the character of your office, 
it has some points of merit that you can point out to 
the customer, and it is your duty to think out just 
what they are, and use them in your talk as occasion 
demands. Depend upon it the bright men among your 
competitors will be doing the same thing. Know the 
value of your position in the printing world, and insist 
upon its recognition. 

By keeping in the counting-room a large line of 
samples, talk with the customer is much facilitated. 
The judicious exhibition of samples forms a back- 
ground to your talk that is as effective as are the 
illustrations to the text of a magazine. They assist you 
in continually calling attention to the originality and 



HOW TO TALK TO CUSTOMERS. 7^ 

ornateness of your work. A superior line of ^samples 
seldom fails to impress a customer with the idea that 
you are a superior printer. We should remember that 
printing is an art as well as a trade, and that the 
printer who leads his customer to better and more ar- 
tistic things is the printer who will earn the greatest 
rewards. Judicious talk is perhaps the most effective 
means the printer has for improving his trade. It re- 
quires no expenditure of money, only judgment and 
brains. By advertising he may bring in customers, but 
it requires talk to land them, retain them, and develop 
them into patrons of good printing. 

A recent article in the Printer and Bookmaker con- 
tains the following sensible thoughts on this subject : 

We are trying to impress the printer who might be a 
talker, that he may give more attention to this necessary 
branch of his business. It is not sufficient when asked for 
an estimate simply to hand over the figures. It is your 
business to show the prospective customer that it is better 
for him to give you the job at your price than to accept a 
lower figure from some one else. You cannot expect to be 
successful in this perhaps more than one time in ten, but if 
you succeed in getting one in ten by some happy argument, 
the merit and the profit will be all due to your talk. 

The man who gives out printing always has some ob- 
ject in view. He expects to realize a profit or gain of some 
sort. If you can show him that you can serve him better 
than others, as in promptness, tasteful display, an extra 
quality of work, or suggestions that help out his ideas, you 
can hope to get the printing at a higher price than some; one 
who offers no other inducement than a low price. 

If by your talk you can enable the customer to see 
more money coming to him as a result of his printing, 
you have scored a valuable point with him. High-class 
printing will always appeal to the eye of the customer; 
make it appeal to his pocket-book also, by calling his 
attention to the f;ict that a thousand copies of a fine 



70 HOW TO TALK TO CUSTOMERS. 

piece of printing will often be read by more people 
than ten thousand copies of a piece of cheap printing, 
and that the people who read the good work are sure 
to be more favorably impressed than those who read 
the cheap work, no matter if it is as well written. 
This is absolutely true, and the printer who keeps his 
eyes open will find numerous instances that he can cite 
to the customer to demonstrate it. 

A few years ago I knew a clever man who acquired 
a patent in the manufacture of wall decorations. It was 
a good thing, both as to looks and cost. He established 
a large plant, got out a great line of samples, and 
photographed them, but proceeded to issue some of the 
meanest and cheapest printed advertising matter that I 
ever saw. His goods were fine, but his printing was 
vile, and no one who judged of the goods by the 
blurred and spotted half-tone illustrations on cheap paper 
ever wanted anything of the sort used in decorating his 
premises. If ever there was a business that demanded 
high-class printing to advertise it, this was one. The 
failure to appreciate this fact closed up the factory and 
bankrupted the proprietor, who was in most things a 
clear-headed and capable man. Had he early in his 
career run against a printer who had talked to him 
with sledge-hammer arguments about his need of the 
very best work, the wall decoration business might 
have been saved, and a good customer preserved to the 
trade. The last time I saw the name of this unfortunate 
concern in print, it was on a list of firms that could 
not pay their bills, and all for want of a right use of 
printers' ink. 

Is it not true that the largest and most successful 
printeries command the highest prices for their work .^ 



HOW TO TALK TO CUSTOMERS. 77 

Is not this apparent in every large town and city ? Is 
not this evidence of the fact that the best class of cus- 
tom demands quality rather than low price, and that 
this is the line of talk to follow up to secure the best 
trade? These questions seem to me so self-evidently 
calling for affirmative replies as not to require answer 
here. They are only thrown in by way of emphasis, 
to clinch the nail of argument, that I hope is fastened 
in the mind of any doubting printer who has hereto- 
fore omitted talking to his customers, or talked only to 
cheapen work. If there are business men continually 
looking for cheap printing, it is largely the fault of the 
printers themselves who have allowed them to develop 
such ideas by their failure to drum into them the cor- 
rect arguments. 

Few things require more tact than talking to custom- 
ers. You must lead them without seeming to do so ; 
you must take them as they come, size them up, and 
talk to each according to his character and intelligence. 
It requires very different lines of talk to affect a base- 
ball sport and a prosperous merchant ; a clergyman and 
a lawyer ; a liquor dealer and a pedagogue. Each must 
be guided by different methods, and occasionally .some 
cannot be guided at all, but resent all hints and sug- 
gestions. In sizing up a new customer it is best to let 
him talk first, and say about all he has to say, that you 
may learn just what he wants. Then try to shape your 
talk so as to give him something that will help along 
the object that he desires to attain. Sometimes this 
requires considerable finesse, but a bright printer who 
makes a study of customers will soon find that it be- 
comes very easy to lead them along to the better class 
of work. 



78 HOW TO TALK TO CUSTOMERS. 

It does not do to be insisting or over-positive with 
customers ; beware of combating them. Only the man 
of superior intelligence can bear to be combated and 
overruled. And when you do it with him, be very sure 
that you are right before you go ahead, for if you 
combat him, and he proves you wrong, it will require 
a long course of good conduct on your part to recover 
a position where he will pay any attention to arguments 
of yours. But if you have a stand-up argument with 
a very brainy man, and best him, you can often have 
it all your own way afterwards in directing his print- 
ing. He sees that you know your business, and are 
disposed to help your trade by assisting in making his 
schemes profitable, and he will be very apt to tie up 
to you. Cultivate your gift for talk, and it will pay you 
better returns than all the gifts of brass-rule twisting or 
jnanipulating of fancy borders to which some aspire. 



CHAPTER IX. 

THE COST OF PRODUCING PRINTING. 

Few matters are of as great importance in bringing 
success to the printing office as the making of prices. 
If they are too high, custom is driven away — if too 
low, there are no profits. Either extreme is disastrous, 
and it requires a strong hand and a clear head to steer 
the craft between this Scylla and Charybdis into pros- 
perous seas. I believe that more printers fail through 
making prices too low than through making them too 
high ; and there are thousands of printers who work 
too cheaply just because they have never learned how 
to charge. They are so afraid of losing work by over- 
charging that they are constantly doing jobs at cost, a 
practice that is wholly indefensible. In order to charge 
properly, a printer must know exactly what it costs to 
produce work. 

The trouble with most printers who estimate incor- 
rectly is that they do not know just what it costs them 
to turn out their work ; they guess at many items and 
forget and omit others. If the paper for a job costs 
$1, and it requires the time of the compositor and 
pressman to the amount of $3, and a price of $8 is 
given the customer, should the customer object and 
demand it at $7, many printers accede to the demand, 
thinking that anything above $5 is profit any way. 
The truth is that such a job usually costs the printer 
every cent of the $8 to get out, and may often cost 
more, as the indirect expenses mount up so rapidly. 



8o THE COST OF PRODUCING PRINTING. 

A writer in the Typothetce aiui Plateinaker, for Septem- 
ber, 1898, contends that it is necessary to add 113 per 
cent, to the compositor's time to get at the actual cost 
(not selling price, but cost), of work in the composing- 
room, and I believe that most printers who have been 
into this subject deeply will agree with me that the 
proper percentage is over 100. 

In large offices the minor expenses are generally 
known, but in smaller offices they are only too often 
guessed at, with the result that the proprietor who 
may think he is getting fair prices discovers after a 
few years that he is making only wages, and perhaps 
wearing out his material without accumulating the 
money to replace it. 

Whether an office ' is large or small the general 
expense can be arrived at, and should be added to 
the cost of labor in estimating on the job. I would 
figure about in this way : 

SMALL COUNTRY OFFICE. 

Platen Press Department, ;employing a quarto and a halt-medium 
jobber : 

One-third of yearly rent and half power, . $125 

One-third cost advertising, ... 40 

Interest, 6 per cent, on $500 investment, . 30 
Depreciation, 8 per cent, on $soo invest- 
ment, . . . . .40 
One-third insurance, light, heat, unpro- 
ductive labor, accidents, errors and 

all incidentals, . . . i so 

Ink, oil, benzine and repairs, . 75 

Share office expenses, . . . 100 

Part time proprietor, . . . . 250 

One-third wages foreman, . . . 2 so 

Wages 2 feeders, 22s days in year,. . 450 

Total, .... $1,510 

Although 22s working days of the feeders :irc fig- 
ured here, the product in such a small plant cannot be 



THE COST OF PRODUCING PRINTING. 8 1 

expected to exceed 200 working days, so the boys will 
have to be maintained in the office at times when 
there is no real work for them. With a 200 days' 
production at a cost of $1,500, we find that the cost of 
running these two job presses is $7. so per day, or say 
$4.25 for the half-medium, and $}.2^ for the quarto. 
If the presses stood idle the whole year round, but in 
a condition of expecting work, this list of expenses 
could be cut to only about $800, or about $2.67 a day, 
estimating that there are 300 days a year on which 
they might be productive. This means that the idle 
time of the half-medium costs $1.30 per day and the 
quarto $1.17 a day. Few printers appreciate this ac/- 
nal cost of idle time of a press, because they do not 
realize that while these presses are idle they are main- 
taining a continual system of expense to keep them in 
readiness to produce work when it is wanted. A man 
might keep these two presses in a barn for a year at 
a cost of less than $100, but when he keeps them in a 
printing office, ready for work, he will find that the 
actual cost is about what is here stated, varying a little 
according to conditions. In estimating on a job of 
work for such a platen press department, it may be 
fairly calculated that such presses can each turn out a 
job of 5,000 impressions, including make-ready and 
minor delays, in a day. To get at the proper price to 
charge the customer for a job of 5,000 impressions on 
the half-medium, one must figure about like this : 



y^ctual time of press costs, . 


$1 


.50 


Margin tor idle time of press, 




•75 


Time of feeder costs, . 


1 


.00 


Time of foreman costs, 




•75 


Ink and waste, .... 




.25 


Profit 




•75 



Total, $5.00 



82 THE COST OF PRODUCING PRINTING. 

Very many printers would forget to make the second 
charge, yet it must not be overlooked, because in the 
natural course of events that press will stand idle one- 
third of the working days in a year, at a cost of $1.50 
a day, and this must be charged up to the paying 
work, or it will be lost. The actual cost of doing that 
5,000 impressions under the conditions given is cer- 
tainly $4.25, and this cost cannot be reduced except 
by increasing the product. If a printer is given a 
year's steady work (300 days) for such a press he can 
i^ifford to run it for $4.25 a day, but all transient work 
should command at least $5 a day under such circum- 
stances. The smaller press should command $4 or 
more a day under similar conditions. Then, if the two 
job presses in this department bring in $9 a day for 200 
days in the year, that is $1,800; this leaves the pro- 
prietor with expenses of $1,510, a profit of $290 a year 
on his platen press department, besides a salary of $250 
for what personal attention he has given to it. 

Cylinder Press Department, employing a 2-roller job and news 
press : 

■One-third of yearly rent and half power, $125 

One-third cost advertising, ... 40 

Interest, 6 per cent, on $1,200 investment 72 

Depreciation, 8 per cent, on $1,200, . 96 
One-third insurance, light, heat, unpro- 
ductive labor, accidents, errors and 

all incidentals, . . . . 1 50 

ink, oil, benzine and repairs, . . 75 

Share office expenses, . . . 100 

Part time proprietor, .... 250 

One-third wages foreman, . . . 250 

Wages, I feeder, 22s days in the year, . 225 



Total, . . . . $1,383 

If this press is used 200 days in the year it will 
cost $7 a day to run it, and $8 a day is the limit of 
price below which no charge should be considered. 



THE COST OF PRODUCING PRINTING. 8} 

Such a press in a country office can usually produce 
about 7,000 impressions during a day, or 5,000 impres- 
sions including make-ready on one job. If the produc- 
tion were but 4,000 a day, which is as much as can be 
•obtained in many offices, the prices would necessarily 
require to be increased. About $2 for ordinary make- 
ready, and $1.20 per 1,000 impressions is therefore the 
lowest price the printer can afford to make for the 
work of such a machine, producing 5,000 impressions 
per day. This will yield him $1,600 for 200 days, or 
a profit of $217 and a salary of $250 for the personal 
iittention he has given the department. It is obvious 
that if he cannot average this output for 200 days in the 
year he must charge more for his work. If the cylin- 
der is busy only 100 days in the year, a condition 
very common in country offices, he can take off his 
estimate of yearly cost $112 for feeder's wages, $100 of 
the foreman's wages, and about $188 from other items, 
$400 in all ; leaving an annual cost of the cylinder press 
department as $988, or $9.88 for each of the 100 days. 
He must then charge $12 per day for the use of his 
cylinder press, which will yield him $212 annual profit 
for the department instead of $217. 

Composing-room Department : 

One-third of yearly rent, . . . $50 

One-third cost advertising, ... 40 

Interest, 6 per cent, on $1,500, . . 90 

Depreciation, 15 per cent, on $1,500, . 225 
One-tliird insurance, light, heat, unpro- 
ductive labor, accidents, errors and 

all incidentals, ... '50 

Share office expenses, .... 200 

Part time proprietor, .... 500 

One-third wages foreman, . . . 250 

Proof-reading, 250 

Wages, I man and' 2 boys, compositors, 

300 days, .' . . 1,200 

Total, . . $2,955 



84 THE COST OF PRODUCING PRINTING. 

If kept on plain composition the three compositors 
may be expected to turn out 15,000 ems per day, which 
costs the office 6j cents per thousand to. produce. 
Country printers who have been in the habit of doing 
composition for 50 and 60 cents per thousand, will 
please go over these figures a few times and see \\ 
they are not correct. If there is a large amount of 
composition, so that the proprietor can afford to put 
on say — two extra compositors, without increasing his 
general expenses, he may bring the cost down to 60 
cents, but with the normal force of compositors given 
above, the cost of the composing-room is $10 a day, 
and that, too, on the favorable assumption that there 
are 300 days in the year when full work can be given 
the compositors. As in an office of this sort there is 
usually a newspaper or some work giving steady em- 
ployment to the compositors, it is not necessary to 
place the work on the 200 days basis, as in the press 
departments. If the proprietor charges 65 cents an hour 
for the man compositor, during the seven hours a day 
that he will be on composition, and 55 cents an hour 
for the boys, on the same basis, that is $12.25 P^i* ^^Y' 
this allows a profit of $2.25 per day for 300 days or 
$675 per year. 

According to the above estimate, the proprietor of 
this country office will be earning as follows : 

Salary. Profit. 

From platen press department, $250 $290 

From cylinder press department, 250 217 

From composing-room, . 500 675 

Totals, . . $1,000 $1,182 

Will any one contend that $2,182 a year is more 
than a fair salary and profit for a man who has the 
ability to run such a plant properly, and has $3,200 



THE COST OF PRODUCING PRINTING. 8^ 

invested in material, and perhaps $2,000 to $3,000 more 
in good will, and who has to take all the risks of dull 
times, bad debts, and a hundred and one other things 
that may interfere with his success ? 1 trust that this 
estimate will set many a country printer to applying 
the method to his own case, that he may know just 
what it costs him to produce his work. 

Suppose we now take an office a grade higher, 
and calculate about what must be charged to yield a 
fair profit. 

A $7,400 SMALL CITY OFFICE. 
Platen press department, employing four job presses : 



One-third rent and half power, 
One-third cost advertising, 
Interest, 6 per cent, on $qoo investment 
Depreciation, 8 per cent, on !ip90o invest 

ment 

Share of insurance, light, heat, unpro 

ductive labor, accidents, errors aiu 

all incidentals, 
Ink, oil, benzine and repairs, 
Share office expenses. 
Part time proprietor, 
Wages, pressman in charge, 300 days, 
Wages, 3 feeders, 225 days, 

Total, 



^200 
60 

54 

72 



250 
150 
200 

375 

750 

1,000 



The expenses of this department are a trifle more 
than double that of the country plant, and having a 
little higher-priced help and better facilities, they should 
turn out a little more than double the amount of work. 
If the presses are a half-medium, two quartos and an 
eighth, the cost of operating them may be fairly di- 
vided as follows : Half-medium, $4.75 per day ; quartos, 
$3.75 each ; eighth, $}.2^ — a total of $15.50 per day. 
According to previous calculations, the country office 
has to charge the customer $1 a thousand impressions 
on the half-medium and 80 cents on the quarto, in 



86 THE COST OF PRODUCING PRINTING. 

runs of five thousand impressions. The small city of- 
fice, with the whole time of a pressman in charge, 
should get 22,000 impressions a day, including make- 
readies, out of the four platen presses, when running 
with full work, as they should be for 200 days in the 
year. If the prices charged are then $1 per one thou- 
sand impressions on the half, 80 cents on the two 
quartos, and 60 cents on the eighth, the yield is $17. 6a 
per day, or $3,520 for the year of 200 full working 
days, leaving a profit of $409 for the department. 

Cylinder press department, employing a 24x36 press, worth $1,200,. 
and a 34x52 press, worth $2,300. 

One-third rent and half power, . . $200 
One-third cost advertising, ... 60 
Interest, 6 per cent, on $3,500 invest- 
ment, 210 

Depreciation, 8 per cent, on $3,500 in- 
vestment, 280 

Share of insurance, light, heat, unpro- 
ductive labor, accidents, errors and 

all incidentals, .... 400 

Ink, oil, benzine and repairs, . . 250 

Share office expenses, .... 500 

Part time proprietor, . 375 

Wages, pressman and 2 feeders, 225 days, 1, 125 



Total, .... $3,400 

This cost is considerably more than double that of 
the one-cylinder department of the country office, but, 
as the presses are of a better class, a product more 
than double in quantity, and much superior in quality, 
may be calculated upon. It is apparent that these 
presses cost about $2,025 ^ Y^^^^ ^^^ their keep alone, 
and if they are busy 225 days in the year, that is $9 
a day (or say $3.50 for the small press and $5.50 for 
the large press) of actual cost, which should be added 
to the labor cost on all jobs run on the presses to as- 
certain the total cost of production. For a job of 



"HE COST OF PRODUCING PRINTIN(i. 8 



1 2,000 Impressions, that can be made ready and run 
oflf complete on the large cylinder within two days' 
time, the proper estimate should be about as follows : 

Time of press, 2 davs, .... $11.00* 

Time of feeder costs, . . 2.50 

Time of pressman, 3.50 

Margin for profit, . . 3 00 

Total, $20.00 

If the job were a difficult one, requiring extra make- 
ready, slip-sheeting, or any other special care, which 
would prevent its being surely completed within two 
days' time, the price should be correspondingly in- 
creased. Figuring in this way the large cylinder would 
pay a profit of $1.50 per day and the small cylinder $1 
a day for 200 days in the year, or a total of $500 for 
the yearly profit of the department. 

Composing-room department, including $3,000 worth of material : 

One-third of yearly rent, . $125 

One-third cost advertising, ... 60 

Interest, 6 per cent, on $3,000 invest- 
ment, . . . . 180 

Depreciation, 15 per cent on $3,000 in- 
vestment, ...... 450 

Share insurance, light, heat, unproduc- 
tive labor, accidents, errors and all 
incidentals, 

Share office expenses, 



Part time proprietor. 
Proof-reading, 
Wages foreman, 



325 
500 
750 
500 
900 



Wages 8 compositors, 300 days, . 4,800 

Total, .... $8,590 

If such an office could keep its eight compositors 
busy 290 days in the year, and charge and collect 60 
cents an hour for their seven hours a day of productive 
time, it could obtain receipts of $9,744, showing a profit 
of $1,154 on the year's work ; but as a matter of fact 
the manager of such a composing-room cannot hope 



*The idle time is included in this. 



88 THE COST OF PRODUCING PRINTING. 

to keep his full force of men active for 290 days each 
year, hence in actual practice he would lose money in 
selling the time of employees at 60 cents an hour. It 
has therefore become the practice to charge also for 
the unproductive time of the men. If the time of com- 
position on a job is 100 hours, many offices will add 
10 hours for proof-reading, and 25 hours for distribu- 
tion, making 135 hours. In this way a profit is secured 
without charging the customer a rate per hour that 
seems to him exhorbitant. Figuring the tim.e on this 
increased basis such a composing-room can employ its 
complement of eight men only 230 days in the year, 
and yet show a profit of $1,000. Perhaps $750 a year 
is what a proprietor might fairly hope to make from 
such a composing-room. It should be noted here that 
few composing-rooms can expect to keep eight hand 
compositors employed with only $3,000 of material, as 
standing forms and varied work cause increased invest- 
ment in type. This is one reason why so few com- 
posing-rooms can show a profit. 

Some may criticise the entry of $500 for proof-reading 
in this composing-room as being too low, but it should 
be remembered that the proprietor is allowed $750 sal- 
ary for his own time here, which is assumed to include 
some of the reading. According to my figuring this 
$7,400 office ought to yield its proprietor total results 
as follows : 



From platen press depart- 
ment, 
From cylinder press depart- 


Salary. 

$375 


Profit. 

$409 


ment, 


375 


500 


From composing-room, . 
From business office, 


750 
500 


7=;o 



Total, . . $2,000 $«,659 



THE COST OF PRODUCING PRINTING. 89 

The above is what it ought to yield if rightly con- 
ducted, with proper charges, and I am only too sorry 
that I cannot add an expression of belief that the average 
office of this size does yield such returns. That it ought 
to pay this much is evidenced by the fact that few 
men would be induced to invest a total of $10,000 
(including good will value) in a printing house, without 
a reasonable certainty of getting a 15 per cent, return 
above salary in good years, to offset the risks of loss 
in bad times. Such being the case, estimates should 
ail be based on the expectation of making such a profit 
at least. 

In the calculations thus f^ir, nothing has been said 
about charges for composition where machines are used. 
1 am one of those who believe that the printer who 
buys high-priced composing machines is entitled to the 
extra profit that these will earn him, and that on putting 
in such machinery he should maintain his prices and 
not proceed to chop the prices down to almost cost. 
Various records kept by printing houses in the large 
cities show that after the compositor has been paid his 
piece rate on composition, there still remains to the 
office a cost of about 27 cents per 1,000 ems to cover 
proof-reading, make-up, and its share of general expense. 
Let the estimator recollect that this 27 cents of cost 
cannot be much reduced in a country office, and that 
it adheres just the same when composing machines are 
used as when the type is set by hand. To get at 
the cost of composition by machine, it is first necessary 
to take the wages item, then add the interest, depreci- 
ation, and minor cost of running the machines, and then 
to add this 27 cents for other expenses. 

The printer who wishes to make correct estimates 



90 THE COST OF PRODUCING PRINTING. 

must remember that there are seven general items of 
cost : composition, presswork, paper stock, plates, bind- 
ing, delivery, and general expense. Each of these items 
may be subdivided. Composition includes type-setting, 
proof-reading, correcting, making-up and distribution. 
Presswork includes the time of the press, the labor 
cost, ink, oil, rollers, drying and handling of sheets. 
Paper includes all paper and card-stock, with an addi- 
tion for waste and a charge for handling and cutting. 
It is proper to charge customers an advance of ten per 
cent, or more on the price of paper stock. Plates 
should include all electrotyping and stereotyping, en- 
graving or other charges connected with illustrations or 
electrotype plates. The binding includes all folding, 
gathering, collating and stitching, besides putting on 
covers, if any. Ruling is also usually figured in with 
the binding. Delivery includes packing, porterage, cart- 
age and expressage. General expense includes rent, 
power, heat, light, water, telephone, clerks, superin- 
tendents, and office help, solicitors, taxes, elevator, 
interest on capital, salary of proprietor, depreciation, 
advertising, charity, insurance, bad debts, spoilage, post- 
age, repairs, collecting, stationery, towels and cleaninf, 
and all other minor items. In a large office these general 
expenses are pretty accurately known, and should be 
divided fairly between the departments. For instance, 
it is manifestly wrong to charge a portion of the power 
to a composing-room where no power is used. Each 
department of the business should carry that portion of 
the general expense that assists in supporting it, in 
proportion to the amount of money invested in that 
department. Rent may properly be divided according 
to the floor space of the departments. Depreciation 



THE COST OF PRODUCING PRINTING. 9 1 

must be calculated by experience. The type and presses 
which were new yesterday are second-hand to-morrow, 
and would bring only half price at a forced sale. 

It is the practice of many printers to charge 25 per 
cent, of type value to depreciation the first year, and 
15 per cent, thereafter. It ought rather to be 35, 25, 
20, and then 15 per cent, a year as long as it lasts. 
This is easily proven. It is fair to assume that the 
average life of type is six years, and that at the end 
of that time, if it has seen good service, it should go 
back to the foundry. $100 put out at interest for six 
years at six per cent, will yield about $142. If the 
same $100 is invested in type, and we charge off $35, 
$25, $20, $15, $15, $15, we have $125, to which we 
may add $17 as the value of the old metal remaining, 
thus securing $142 for the original $100 invested. In 
preceding tables I have figured interest and depreciation 
in composing-room at 6 and 15 per cent, respectively, 
or a total of 21 per cent., which in six vears yields 
126, as against 125, the actual value loss in six years. 

We can get at depreciation on presses in much the 
same way. Money doubles at interest in about thirteen 
years. In 1 3 years a new press becomes two-thirds 
worn out, and so antiquated that the live printer usually 
sells it and buys an up-to-date machine in its place. 
Suppose a cylinder be bought for $2,000. It can be sold 
after thirteen years for about $400. The $2,000 would 
be $4,000 at interest, therefore we have $3,600 to mark 
off in depreciation and interest in that 13 years. That 
means $500 the first year, then $400, $350, $300 for 
the next three years, $250 for the next year, and then 
$200 a year for the balance of the thirteen years. In 
previous tables I have figured interest and depreciation 



92 THE COST OF PRODUCING PRINTING. 

in the press-room at 6 and 8 per cent, respectively, or 
a total of 14 per cent., which seems to me to fairly 
represent the average depreciation in a press-room which 
is kept up by the occasional introduction of new ma- 
chinery. 

If the printer in estimating will always bear in mind 
that his miscellaneous items of expense are at least 
double the labor cost, and that he has to earn 14 per 
cent, on his machinery and 21 per cent, on his type to 
come out even, and that profit must be charged on top 
of these things — if he will always remember these, he 
is not likely to commit the common error of doing work 
at cost or below cost, or to find out after a few years 
that he has no money with which to replace his fast 
depreciating material. 

If he will also bear in mind that a journeyman's wage 
is about 30 cents an hour, to which must be added 
another 30 cents for general expenses, and 30 cents more 
for interest, depreciation and profit, a total of 90 cents 
for every hour of productive labor; that of a good 
cylinder press with the usual help $1.50 an hour, and a 
job press (half-medium with help) about $1 an hour, 
this will serve as a convenient method of proving the 
correctness of his estimates when they become complex. 
In order that the printer may be able to know just 
what his general expenses are, and how best to divide 
them and charge to the several departments, I have 
appended here some tables taken from a report of a 
committee of the Cincinnati Typothetse on "The Cost 
of Printing. " With a little pains any printer can adapt 
these to his own establishment. This is very important, 
for unless the printer knows just what general ex- 
penses belong to each department of his business, how 



THE COST OF PRODUCING PRINTING. 



93 



can he know just what it is costing him to turn out 
his work ? 



GENERAL EXPENSES OF A $6^,000 PRINTING PLANT. 



EKT — $2,400 — 








Cellar: Vault for storage 








of Plates (charged to 








Press-room), . . . 


$18 


35 




6 oiler and Engine 








(charged to Power and 








Heat), 


30 


6=^ 




Storage of Paper 








(charged to Press- 








room), 


191 


00 


$240 00 


First floor — Press-room, 






500 00 


Second floor — 








Counting-room, . . 


09 


75 




Bindery, .... 


85 


75 




Press-room, . . . 


304 


50 


400 00 


Third floor — Bindery, . . 


. . 




400 00 


Fourth floor — Bindery , . 


. 




400 00 


Fifth floor— Composing-room, . 




400 00 



$2,400 00 
Distribution of same — 

Press-room, $1,013 85 



Bindery, . . 






885 


75 


Composing-ro>;m, 






400 


00 $2,299 60 


*Counting-room, 
*Power and Heat 






69 
30 


15 
65 














$2,400 


00 


Iksurance— $890 30— 










Composing-room — type, . 




$1 1,200 


$237 


40 


Press-room — stock, . . 


$6,200 








Press-room — machinery. . 


14,560 


20,760 


440 


10 


Bindery — stock, . . . 


800 








Bindery — machinery, . . 


7,280 


8,080 


171 


25 848 7c; 


*Power and Heat — engine, 


1,960 


1,960 


4> 


55 



12,000 



$890 30 



♦ Included under those heads further along. 



94 THE COST OF PRODUCING PRINTING. 

Taxes — $325,73 — 

Press-room, . . $4,875 . . . , . $131 93 

Composing-room, 2,500 67 66 

Bindery, . . . 2,625 7' 04 

Paper— stock, . 1,937 (charged to Press-room) 52 40 $32303 

*Counting-room, 100 2 70 

$12,037 $325 73 

Interest on Capital Invested — 
Press-room, $24,825 at 6 per 

cent $1,489 50 

Press-room — paper stock, $7,885 

at 6 per cent 473 10 

Press-room — unfinished work, 

$840 at 6 per cent. ... 50 40 $2,013 ^^ 

Bindery, $1 3,980.65 at 6 per cent. 838 84 

Bindery — stock $ 1 , 000. 50 at 6 per 

cent 60 03 

Bindery — unfinished work, $1 ,02 1 

at 6 per cent 61 26 960 13 

Composing-room, $11,521.45 at 

6 per cent 691 29 

Composing-room — unfinished 

work, $996 at 6 per cent. . . 59 76 751 05 $3,724 18 

*Power and Heat, $3,741 at 6 per cent. . . 224 46 

* Water Fixtures, $250 at 6 per cent. . . 15 00 

*Gas Fixtures, $250 at 6 per cent .... 1 5 00 

*Counting-room, $467 at 6 per cent. . . 28 02 

$4,006 66 
Water — 

Interest on Fixtures, $15 00 

Water Rent — Employees, 30 00 $45 00 

*Water Rent — Boilers (charged to Power and 

Heat), 36 30 

*Water Rent — Elevator 151 11 

$232 41 
Light — 

Interest on Fixtures, $15 00 

Gas consumption — Bindery, 128 03 

Gas consumption — Composing-room, . . 42 67 

Gas consumption — Press-room, . $256 04 

Electric Light — Press-room, . 263 54 SiQ s8 $70s 28 

* Included under those heads further along. 



THt COST OF PRODUCING PRINTING. 95 



Elevator- 



Water-power $151 11 

Repairs, ^6 70 $187 81 $187 8i 

■Counting-room and Ghnhral — 

Rent, $(59 75 

Interest (on Capital invested) 28 Oi 

Taxes, 2 70 

Salaries — Manager, $1,560; Book-keeper, 

$1,144; Clerk, $401 ; Boy, $137. 8s, . . 1,242 85 

Stationery, 22 50 

Advertising, 743 00 

Telephone, 100 60 

Commercial Agency, ....... 50 00 

Legal Expenses, 20 00 

Trade Journals, 22 06 

Bad Accounts (charged to Profit and Loss), 1,182 ^5 

Interest and Liscount, 1,222 81 

Soap and Towels, 55 50 

Two Porters, 782 64 

Interest on outstanding accounts, $4,750 at 6 

per cent 285 00 

Petty Cash Expenses (such as car-fare, post- 
age, donations, Christmas gifts, brooms, 
police, scrubbing, ice, drayage, charity, 

repairs, plumbing, etc.), , 408 00 $8,237 7^ 

Power and Heat — Divided. 

Total. Power. Heat. 

Rent, $30 05 $20 65 $4 00 

Insurance, 4^55 4'55 

Interest, 224 46 150 66 73 80 

Water, 36 30 27 30 9 00 

Salary — engineer, . . 852 38 746 38 106 00 

Fuel — (Bindery, special heat, 

$100,) 439 50 254 50 185 00 

Repairs — Boiler and Engine, 125 10 112 60 12 50 

Oil, '7 25 17 2s 

Depreciation — Boiler, etc.. 
$880 at 10 per cent. . 88 00 77 00 1 1 00 

Depreciation — Engine, shaft- 
ing, etc. , $ 1 , 74 1 at I o per 
cent '74 '*^^ '74 'O 

Depreciation — Fixtures, 
heating, $1,120 at 10 per 
cent 1 12 00 .... 1 12 00 

$1,627 99 $513 30 $513 30 
1,627 99 

Total General Expense, .... $18,512 72 



96 



THE COST OF PRODUCING PRINTING. 



DISTRIBUTION TO DEPARTMENTS. 





Press-room, 


Bindery. 


Comp'g-room 




$2,299 60 Rent, . . 


. $1,013 85 


$885 75 


$400 00 


$2,299 60 


848 75 Insurance, 


440 10 


171 25 


237 40 


848 75 


323 03 Taxes, 


184 33 


71 04 


67 66 


323 03 


3,724 18 Interest, . 


2,013 00 


960 13 


751 05 


3,724 18 


45 00 Water, 


10 65 


23 20 


11 15 


45 00 


705 28 Light, 


5=8 58 


»32 53 


44 '7 


705 82 


187 81 Elevator, . 


75 12 


75 12 


37 57 


187 81 


8,237 78 Counting-room, 2,865 30 


3,581 66 


1,790 82 


8,237 78 


1,627 99 Power, . . 


1,240 32 


387 67 




1,627 99 


513 30 Heat, . . 


106 80 


324 50 


82 00 


5>3 30 



$18,512 72 



$8,478 05 $6,612 8^ $3,421 82 $18,512 72 



CHAPTER X. 

ESTIMATING. 

No portion of the work of an employing printer 
requires more care than the making of estimates. The 
calculations cannot be made correctly without a knowl- 
edge of the cost of producing work ; hence, they require 
to be made by a practical man, and the more knowledge 
he has of the details of the business the fewer mistakes 
he is liable to make. Estimating involves a calculation 
(often a shrewd guess) of the time required to perform 
certain work. The estimator must be careful not to 
judge of the time required by his own performance,. 
fop the chances are that he is a more than ordinarily 
fast workman. Most men who are near the top of the 
business are better and faster workmen than the average 
of those they hire. To judge of the time required on: 
a job one must allow for the average product under 
average conditions. Something is always occurring to 
prevent work being turned out in record time. It is a 
popular saying that a man can set i,ooo ems an hour,, 
but the actual performance in book offices is about 5,000 
ems a day per man. A cylinder or job press can be 
run at a speed of 1,500 an hour, yet a large office in 
New York city found that its average production in a 
year from all its presses was but eleven tokens a day! 
These things are worth remembering when computing 
the probable time on a job. 



98 ESTIMATING. 

It is best not to estimate closely on small jobs — say 
under C20. It is also best to decline giving figures on 
work that is being hawked about ..mong a number of 
offices, looking for a low bidder. Soiriebody is pretty 
sure to do it for less than it is worth, and it is a waste of 
good time for a printer who aims to do good work to 
figure en cheap work. 

In estimating on book work or the like, it is often 
desired to know just how much the copy will make. 
]n the case of a large job one cannot be too careful to 
.avoid error here. When the size of type, size of page 
.and leading have been decided, in order to learn how 
;many pages the copy will make, count the words in 
.a number of pages of the manuscript copy, making sure 
that you select average pages. If possible have a page 
set up, and be very sure that it is an average page. 
One cannot be certain that 500 words of manuscript 
selected at one point in the copy will equal the number 
of ems of 500 words taken from another point. A 
variation of fully 20 per cent, has been noted in the 
number of ems occupied by 500 words, as som.e sub- 
jects seem to require much longer words than other 
subjects. Then there is the matter of breaklincs to be 
noted, which has so large a bearing on the way matter 
:strings out. Having duly weighed all points, and being 
fully satisfied what portion of a printed page is filled 
by a page of manuscript, add a margin of five per 
cent, for safety, then half a page or mere for each 
chapter that makes a break, which is sure to be greater 
in the type than in the manuscript. Count each title, 
dedication, frontispiece, etc., a page, and add blank 
pages to make even forms. 

If the copy is uneven, or on odd sizes of paper, or 



ESTIMATING. 99 

is only furnished in part, or contains a number of illus- 
trations that are of uncertain size, always decline to 
make an exact estimate as to the number of pages, 
but make price variable, depending upon the number 
of pages it may run. 

In determining the required amount of paper for a job, 
first be sure of your size, then the weight, quality and 
price. Beginners sometimes forget that if i6 pages go 
on one side of a sheet that it is necessary to allow but 
one sheet to }2 pages, and until a habit is established 
of regarding this simple point any estimator is apt to 
make a big bungle in figuring his paper cost on a job. 
Five per cent, should be added for waste of paper in 
printing, and a charge of 75 cents an hour is proper 
for cutting, and 50 to 60 cents an hour for packing 
and handling. On large lots of paper the customer 
should be charged an advance of 10 per cent, over 
the cost, and in small lots a larger percentage. On paper 
or card stock under $5 value, 25 per cent, advance is 
not too much. It is well known that stationers com- 
monly charge 50 to 100 per cent, on small lots. It is 
worth a larger margin because it often takes as much 
time to buy §5 worth of paper as to buy $500 worth. 

In calculating on paper that has to be cut fron\ 
larger sizes, one must bear in mind that if the job is 
to be run two or four on a sheet that it may not cut 
as well, involving more waste. Sometimes the paper 
can be got out more economically by making up a form 
the long way. If a certain job cuts conveniently nine 
to a sheet, and several are to be run at once, it will 
probably be better to run \hree at a time than to run 
four and waste paper ; but it may be practical to secure 
a larger size of paper of the same grade and run in fours. 

LofC. 



lOO ESTIMATING. 

All these things have to be borne in mind when making 
the estimates. 

When figuring the amount of composition on a job 
it is necessary to keep a watchful eye on price-and-a- 
half and double-price matter, and to make the needed 
extra charge. In judging of the time required to set 
an unusual piece of work it is well to take the judgment 
of another as well as your own. If a compositor thinks 
that he can set four pages a day it commonly turns 
out that he does set but three, and it is not often safe 
to figure on more than that. 

In determining a price for presswork one may usu- 
ally take fixed charges for the make-ready of forms 
of ordinary character, and for cut forms, half-tones, etc. 
The margin of time for make-ready should be liberal, 
however, as the starting up of a job on a press involves 
so many chances for delay. The preceding job may 
have been such as to involve a wash-up and change 
of impression surface, or it may be necessary to break 
in a new feeder, or a pressman unfamiliar with the con- 
veniences of the office, or there may be delays because of 
a poor plate, or because an electrotype has not come from 
the foundry. Things of this sort are occurring all the 
time rather than occasionally, and they must be allowed 
for in estimates if loss is to be avoided. A set price of 
so much a token or thousand may be made for certain 
different classes of presswork, after experience has shown 
that they are sufficient to yield a profit under average 
conditions ; but the printer should be wary in making 
a price on uncertainties in presswork. A new and 
untried grade of paper may present unsuspected diffi- 
culties in the way of peeling, or may require a special 
grade of ink involving much experimenting. 1 once 



ESTIMATING. lOI 

knew a printer who took a job of i,ooo posters on 
cotton cloth at double the price of paper, thinking that 
was a large enough margin. The threads raveling from 
the edges of the cloth were continually getting on to 
the rollers, so that the set used were wholly spoiled 
and the time on the job was about four times what 
he had estimated. Another printer who took a job of 
presswork, in red ink, at $2 for 1,000 as a "filler," was 
astounded to find that he could not get a decent effect 
on the paper furnished with anything less than ink which 
cost him the full $2 per 1,000 impressions he was get- 
ting for the job. I knew recently of a three-color job 
being taken by a prosperous city house at what was 
thought a fair figure, and after two colors were run it 
was found that the third could not be made to register 
because the form only impressed the paper at three 
distant points, and it was impossible to get the paper 
to lay against the cylinder as closely as when the first 
two impressions were taken, therefore the register was 
imperfect. The first printings had to be thrown away 
and the job printed in single pages to secure perfect 
register, involving a loss of about $1,000. This means 
that unless a printer is absolutely sure of what he is 
doing he should not make a price on fine work except 
by the hour, or with some emergency clause which will 
save him on occasions like those mentioned. No printer 
can have familiarity with all classes of work, and even 
those who think they have experience sometimes fail 
seriously in appreciating the cost of producing a job that 
has some feature a little out of the common. 

I hesitate to name prices for presswork, but I realize 
that there are those who will want figures to assist them. 
I do not believe that it is possible to make any money 



102 ESTIMATING. 

doing a good grade of cylinder presswork for less than 
$1.50 per 1,000, and a very large sheet or a number of 
fine illustrations should increase this minimum price 
to $2 per 1,000. Where colored ink is used it is 
commonly worth one-half more, and may be worth 
double. The peculiarities of the job, size of sheet, length 
of run, etc., must determine the exact figures in any 
case. 

In estimating on a large number of copies of a small 
job, one must usually figure in two or three ways to 
find out how many it is best to run on a sheet. One 
cannot be sure at a glance whether a job of a given 
quantity can be run most cheaply by setting up and 
making four plates or eight plates. Sometimes it is 
cheapest to set up several and run the whole thing from 
type, and occasionally it is best to run one type-form with 
three duplicates in plates. To illustrate, suppose we 
have 50,000 copies of a 6x9 circular on good paper, for 
which tine printing is desired. It cost $1.50 to set the 
type, and electros 5X8 = 40 inches, cost 80 cents each. 

Cost of presswork and electrotyping 50,000 circulars, 4 on: 

Four electros, $3 20 

Make-up and make-ready, ... i 50 

i2,Soo impressions, at $1.00, . . 12 80 

Straightening, cutting and packing, . 6 00 



Total, . . . . $23 50 

Cost of presswork and electrotyping 50,000 circulars, 8 on: 

Eight electros, $6 40 

Make-up and make-ready, . . . 2 00 

6,400 impressions at $1.25, . . . 8 00 

Straightening, cutting and packing, . 4 00 

Total, .... t20 40 

Cost of presswork and electrotyping 50,000 circulars, 16 on: 

Sixteen electros, . . . . . $12 80 

Make-up and make-ready, . . . 3 00 

^.200 impressions at $i.qo, . . 4 80 

Straightening, cutting and packing, . 3 00 

Total. . . . . $23 60 



ESTIMATING. .IO3 

The making of eight electros is evidently the cheapest; 
but if the order were changed to 100,000 it would be 
cheaper 10 run sixteen on. 

Ano:her element in figuring on work of this character 
is that we now have special presses on which small jobs 
are turned out from single forms at a speed of from 3,00a 
to 9,000 an hour. With one of these machines and one 
electro the whole job might be completed in a day, and 
the cost still further reduced. Or, if the job were larger 
and of a cheap grade, it might be put upon a web press 
and done at half the price at which it could be run 
on a cylinder. But let the printer always remember 
that if he has better machinery than others, he has a 
right to make more money, and is, therefore, under 
no obligation to give such profits to the customer. The 
printer who is among the first to put in new labor-saving 
machines takes chances, and should reap the rewards in 
extra profits- when he secures new machines that are 
money-earners. 

Every employing printer should keep a book of esti- 
mates, retaining a copy of every estimate sent out. It 
is also well to preserve the figuring and calculations in 
case it may be necessary to go over' the figures later. 
This avoids chances of disputes with customer;, who 
sometimes forget or misunderstand, and say that you 
have promised to do the job for so much, or und.T such 
and such conditions. It is unsafe to name a price on a 
job that is at all complicated, or that involves much 
money, without going over the figures two or thr^e times 
to prove them. The most careful of men w.ll make 
errors at times, and only by systematic proving of the 
figures can the estimator avoid loss. He should figure 
each item of cost separately, so as not to confuse them^ 



I04 ESTIMATING. 

nnd examine each to see if it is right, before he totals the 
lot. Then it is well to figure the job all over again in a 
different way. For instance, one may estimate on a job 
by taking every item at cost, adding all general expenses, 
and a final profit. Then one may prove this by calcu- 
lating the number of hours' work on the whole job, 
multiplying by the price per hour customarily charged, 
and then adding for cost of materials used, etc. A third 
way is to calculate the presswork at a fixed rate known 
to yield a profit, then the composition, binding, etc., in 
the same way. This is probably the method most 
commonly employed by printers, and while it has the 
advantage of quickness I think it the most unsafe way of 
estimating largj jobs, because the estimator is not brought 
face to face with the actual cost, and is too apt to think 
that he can drop ofl" ten per cent, to get the job, and yet 
receive a profit. However, the printer who figures his 
large jobs in two or more ways, and finds that his totals 
are nearly in agreement, has positive assurance that his 
figuring is correct, and in deciding on the final price to 
the customer realizes just how much he is impairing his 
profit if he cuts the price slightly. If the printer finds a 
material difference in the totals obtained by the three 
methods, the reason for the difference can be hunted for 
and found, and a perhaps serious error is avoided. 

I recently saw an estimate of $144 given on a job that 
was done by a reputable printer, and I give a summary 
of the job here, with estimates formulated in several 
ways, proving, 1 think, that the price ought to have been 
at the very least $210, and that it was done at an iictual 
loss of $40. The job was 5,000 catalogues, 56 pages and 
cover, 6x9 inch page, all stock, engravings and electros 
furnished, outside cover to be in two colors, binding pur- 



ESTIMATING. 



10=^ 



chased outside, proofs to be furnished, and job to be 
packed and delivered f. o. b. 



ESTIMATE • BY ITEMS AT ACTUAL COST. 

Composition 56 pages, 1 y^ hours per page, at 30c. 

an hour, $25 20 

Time distributing and proof-reading on same, 40 

hours at 30c., 12 00 

Composition, four pages of cover (two pages in two 

colors) 12 hours at 30c., . 3 60 

Distribution, proof-reading and make-up of cover, 

5 hours at 30c., . . . . 1 50 

Make-up three 16s and one 8-page form, s iiours 

at 33c. 1 65 

Taking proofs s hours, and extra corrections =; hours 

at 30C., 1 00 

Making ready three 1 6s at 2 hours each, and one 8 

at 1/^ liours; two color-forms at 2 hours 

each, M% hours at 33c., . . . . ",80 

Time ot feeder, 6 forms of 5,000 each, at 7 hours 

each, at 20c. an hour, . . 

Half time of pressman for 42 hours at 33c., . 
Packing and delivery, 5 hours at 25c., 
Time of office help on job, 20 hours, at 30c.. 

Total labor cost, ..... 

100 per cent, added for general expense. 

Binding (done outside), 

Percentage on binding, 

10 per cent, of labor and exp., for profit. 

Total, .... !-)2G7 32 

ESTIMATE BY SET RATES. 

Composition of 56 pages, the equivalent of 1.200 

ems composition to page, at 70c. per 1,000, !j^47 04 

Composition cover, four pages, two in two colors 
12 hours at 60c., plus one-third for proof 
reading and distribution. 

Make-up, six forms, 5 hours at 75c., 

Time taking proofs, 10 hours at soc, 

Presswork, three 16-page forms at 6oc. a token, 
" one 8-page form at 30c. a token, 

*' cover, two color-forms at 75c. a token 

Packing and delivery, 5 hours at 6oc., 

Binding $40, and percentage thereon, $6, 

10 per cent, on all but the binding for profit, 



8 


40 





93 


I 


25 


6 


00 


I73 


yy 


7> 


y 


40 


00 


6 


00 


'4 


66 



9 


60 


3 


75 


5 


00 


36 


00 


10 


00 


> 30 


00 


; 


00 


. 46 


GO 


• >4 


50 



Total, 



. $204 80 



36 


00 


19 


13 


48 


20 


48 


20 


•5 


•5 


46 


oo 



I06 ESTIMATING. 

ESTIMATE BY TIME, ETC. 

Time of large cylinder press, practically one week, 
at $6 per day, 

Time of pressman and feeder at actual cost, as 
previously figured, ..... 

Time in composing-room, etc., as previously figured, 
at cost, but omitting time of office help, 

lOO per cent, added to composing-room for gen- 
eral expense, 

10 per cent, on above items for profit. 

Binding $40, and percentage thereon, $6, 

Total, $212 68 

I want to call special attention here to the fact that the 
charge of 100 per cent, added to labor cost for general 
expenses may be too low for many establishments. No 
printer ought to take this for granted without knowing 
just what is his general expense. A committee of the 
Typothetae of Cincinnati, in 1888, made an exhaustive 
report on the cost of printing, and reported that in the 
composing-room **The amount of general expense to 
be charged against each job is a sum equal to about 
113 per cent, of the wages involved in the job." If 
the 113 per cent, had been used in the above estimates 
the cost of the job would have been increased about $9. 

Comparison of the above estimates deduces one 
interesting fact, that while the totals of the estimates by 
** actual cost" and "set rates" are nearly the same, yet 
the cost of the presswork is nearly $38 more and the 
composition almost $29 less by ''set rates." As the 
'•'set rates" are those commonly asked in the large cities 
of the United States to-day, the comparison serves to 
show why so many have complained that there was no 
money in composition, and that they took it simply 
to feed the pressroom. The price of composition 
should be raised considerably above that quoted in the 
"set rates. " 



ESTIMATING. IO7 

An estimator for a printing plant is much strength- 
ened in his work by the keeping of a record of the 
cost of all jobs, and subsequent comparison with the 
cost he has estimated. In every well regulated office 
it is possible to know after a job is done just what it 
cost, and this subsequent correction of estimates tends 
to make the man who does the calculating more expert. 

It is generally remarked in the trade that printing 
is a ten per cent, business. Where there are a few 
firms that claim to make more than ten per cent, on 
their capital, there are dozens that admit that they make 
less. It seems to me that it is the duty of the men who 
make the estimates to try and improve this condition 
of affairs. In a business that involves so many risks, 
as does printing, we ought to figure to make 15 or 20 
per cent. There are very few lines of trade in which 
producers take the chances that printers do. The press 
builder wisely takes no risks, but protects himself with 
chattel mortgages ; the paper dealer insists on a rating 
and limited credit ; even the tailor no longer trusts 
indiscriminately, but demands part cash down with the 
order. But the printer habitually takes orders for work 
that is of no use to any one but the man ordering, 
makes a price before he knows the cost, and usually 
waits for his pay. His risk is added to by the practical 
impossibility of turning out a large job without some 
typographical errors, any of which may serve as a basis 
for a demand by the customer for a discount. When 
trade customs demand that the printer take such chances 
as these, the printer ought to estimate to protect him- 
self by demanding a larger profit on the work that 
affords a profit. 

The detail of an estimate should never be shown to 



108 ESTIMATING.' 

a customer. He is not entitled to know anything but 
the gross price. The wisdom of retaining such knowl- 
edge is apparent on a very short examination of the 
effect of showing the details of estimates to customers. 
If you show the customer that you have placed a profit 
of 15 per cent, on the electrotyping you handle, you 
only invite him to go and buy direct of the electrotyper. 
If you show him that you are lower on presswork 
than Jones, and Jones shows him that he is lower on 
composition than you, pretty soon the work is divided 
so that both you and Jones are getting the little end 
of it. The knowledge of details when gained by a 
customer is always liable to be used to the disadvantage 
of the printer. Remember that your knowledge is a 
large part of your stock in trade, and that it should 
not be given away. 

Beware of allowing yourself to be used as a tool 
by customers who bring you work to figure on, with 
no intention of giving you the job, but simply in the 
hope of securing a low figure, by which to hammer 
down the price of the printer who is doing the work. 
If you allow yourself to be used to reduce prices to 
your competitors, you have only yourself to blame when 
they retort in kind against you. Theo. L. De Vinne 
says on this point, in his "Price List": 

" It is not fair to price another printer's work from partial 
representations of the case. hi all cases where estimate is 
given to unknown parties, on reprint work, give it in this 
form : ' For an exact reprint,' so much. ' For work from 
manuscript copy, with alterations, etc.,' a much higher price." 



CHAPTER XI. 

ACaUIRING MONEY. 

The printers who retire from business with a com- 
petency are the exception. Only a small number acquire 
financial success. On the other hand, it is not an 
uncommon thing to find men, along in years, working 
at the case, who in days gone by have been owners of 
printing offices, and in many instances owners of offices 
of considerable magnitude. Many build up a large 
business and accumulate a great amount of machin- 
ery and type, but when the day of reckoning comes, 
or a period of adversity sets in, or they are compelled 
to dispose of their plants for any reason, that which 
cost them thousands of dollars will not realize hundreds. 
If they have put everything into their business and the 
march of progress has made their plant a back-number, 
they must in order to continue in business sacrifice 
their profits to compete with the new improved machin- 
ery ; and when that time arrives the end is near at 
hand. 

Striking examples of this are so numerous as to be 
familiar to every one ; and so few precautions are taken 
to guard against it that it is probable that the same 
condition will always exist. 

I have made a chapter on this subject because of 
the many friendly expressions from employers who had 



I lO ACQUIRING MONEY. 

read my article in a trade paper on "Business Pre- 
cautions," which was written along these lines. One 
New York printer who has a very large plant said : 
" If I had adopted your plan 25 years ago 1 would be 
independently rich to-day and could retire from business ; 
but it is too late now. 1 must continue to scrape along. 
My plant is a big one, but it is a back-number, and I 
can't make the profit I used to. My opportunities are 
gone !" 

People in other lines go into business in the hope 
of making money enough so they can take things easy 
in later life if they want to. They have this purpose 
in view throughout their entire career, and the pro- 
portion who accomplish their aim are probably greater 
in almost any other business than in printing. They 
acquire real estate and other properties that continue 
to increase in value, and after having been in business 
fifteen or twenty years they have money enough on 
which to live comfortably, and can give up active busi- 
ness if they want to. It seems to be very different in 
the printing business ; the majority of printers put all 
their earnings back into their plants, buying more 
machinery and reaching out for other classes of work 
without investigating the possibilities of making any 
greater profit with the increased facilities. Many and 
many a printer who was making a comfortable living 
with a small plant has been brought to ruin by "growing 
too fast," and by loading himself down with the expense 
of machinery which he not only did not have sufficient 
work for, but which would not have made a profit 
commensurate to the outlay even if he had been fairly 
successful in getting work for the machines. If the 
money had been put into a savings bank instead, it 



ACaUIRlNG MONEY. I I I 

would have increased steadily, while on the other hand 
the original investment not only depreciated in value, 
but was also an added expense and a constant drain 
on his profits. It is safer sometimes to err on the side 
of conservatism than on the side of adventure. At 
least let the chances of success be in your favor. Don't 
go into anything blindly. Just as systematic saving 
grows very rapidly, so a constant expense will amount 
to a considerable sum if allowed to continue. Five 
hundred dollars unnecessarily spent in fixing up a 
handsome office is less wasteful than if put into a 
machine that cannot be kept profitably busy. With 
the first the loss ends with the outlay, while with the 
latter there is a constantly accumulating loss which far 
exceeds the original amount. Don't let the foregoing 
remarks lead you to believe that I am opposed to the 
adoption of improved machinery ; for there is nothing 
I would advocate more strongly. The man who con- 
tinues to operate an antiquated machine, the output 
from which is inferior to other machines in use, makes 
a very grave mistake. He handicaps his possibilities 
of success, because the running expense, if not more, 
is as great on the old machine ; it takes up as much 
floor space, and in every way costs as r v.ch to run ; 
therefore, if the improved one will produce more, and 
the accumulation of the increased profit would in a 
short time pay for the expense of making the change 
it would be very unwise not to do so, because the 
machine is not only paying for itself, but soon begins 
to earn a larger profit for its owner. Before making a 
change, however, there should be a reasonable certainty 
of having the necessary work to keep it profitably 
busy. 



1 12 ACaUIRlNG MONEY. 

A man's earning capacity is greatest between the ages 
of 25 and 45 years. If he will adopt some method of 
forced systematic saving during that period he will be 
able in later life to withstand almost any adversity. In 
times of financial panic, plant and machinery count for 
very little ; the man with available cash is master of 
the situation. 

The plan that I recommend and the one I have 
adopted, is Life Insurance and the Building arid Loan 
plan. A regular investment of one dollar a week in a 
Building and Loan Association will amount to nearly 
$1,000 in eleven or twelve years ; five dollars a week 
will amount to five times as much ; twenty dollars a 
week, twenty times as much. Systematic saving ac- 
cumulates most wonderfully, but very few of us will 
continue to save systematically unless it be by some 
plan which once begun, requires that we shall continue. 
Local Building and Loan Associations are as safe as Sav- 
ings Banks. Savings Banks are all right, but the man 
who makes up his mind to try to put a stated amount 
in the bank every week or every month will find many 
excuses for neglecting to do so, and perhaps soon 
abandon the plan entirely ; whereas the stimulus and 
incentive of the Building and Loan system are likely 
to induce him to find a means of fulfilling his obligation. 

Besides the Building and Loan plan the employing 
printer should carry a Life Insurance Policy. The reli- 
able insurance companies issue policies that will meet 
the requirements of almost any individual. Policies are 
written giving several options. The Endowment and 
Paid-up Policy plans are excellent. After being in force 
three months the family is provided for in case of death 
of the insured. At the expiration of three years the 



ACdUlRiNG MONEY. I I3 

policy is non-forfeitable. Whatever happens, the policy 
has a fixed value. If the insured finds it impossible to 
continue his insurance, or wishes to reduce the amount, 
the money he has paid is not lost. His insurance has 
a borrowing value. An arrangement can be made 
with the company whereby the insured may have 
additional time in which to pay his insurance in the 
event of such payment coming due at a date when he 
is unprepared. And an Endowment Policy that is begun 
in the prime of life matures at the time when a man 
may be glad to retire from the worries and details of 
the printing business. There is the security in these 
two plans that will enable a man to safely pass through 
a critical period that would otherwise be disastrous. 

They may appear too trivial for some employers, 
but 1 have seen large enterprises go to pieces that could 
have been saved with less than a thousand dollars. 
The putting away regularly of a small amount is so 
insignificant as to be almost beneath the consideration 
of some business men ; but in neglecting it (with the 
expectation of making profit enough to permit of some- 
thing on a more extensive and more pretentious scale), 
they may find that they cannot work out their ambition. 
They may perhaps be compelled to forfeit the fruits of 
a lifetime, and begin again at the bottom of the ladder, 
at a time of life when they are least fitted for the 
struggle. 



CHAPTER XII. 

PRICE CUTTING. 

If there is any one thing in the business management 
of a printing office that particularly commands the utter 
disapproval of successful printers as being worse than 
other evils that beset the trade, it is the cutting of prices. 
The method of getting work by lowering the price 
has absolutely nothing to recommend it, and it is contrary 
to common sense. The practice is absolutely wrong 
in principle, and the reasoning advanced in its support, 
stripped of its verbiage, is the equivalent of that of the 
old apple-woman who bought apples at a cent each 
and was selling them at ten cents a dozen, and when 
asked how she could make any money at that replied: 
^'By doing a very large business." 

The majority of employing printers are more enthusi- 
astic workers than they are competent business men. 
They worry more about an idle press than they do 
about the lack of profit in a job; and for this reason 
will take a profitless order for the sole purpose of 
keeping a press busy. Thus they establish a price 
not only on that particular order, but one that is used 
for comparison with every succeeding order. The evil 
results are not confined to the printer who does this, 
but other printers are expected to meet these prices, 
and knowing that the work has once been done at 



PRICE CUTTING. . II5 

these figures, another will take it at the same price, 
and soon this profitless price becomes the established 
price, and the whole trade is injured thereby. It is the 
repetition of this sort of thing that has demoralized 
the job printing business, and the only salvation lies in 
bringing this fact forcibly before the attention of the 
trade so that printers will realize the folly of it, and 
rather see a press idle or a composing-room empty 
than work for nothing. 

There is always a certain amount of printing that 
must be done, and which will be placed at a figure 
that will leave a profit to the printer, if no printer can 
be induced to take it at a loss ; and if employers gen- 
erally, instead of taking work for the sake of keeping 
their plants busy, will refuse to handle it except at a 
fair profit, they will find at the end of the year that 
they are better off, and soon the benefit will be felt 
all along the line, and the printing business will be in 
a more hopeful condition. 

If the printing business as generally conducted is a 
ten per cent, business, it is apparent that a charge of 
ten per cent, more will increase the profit one hundred 
per cent., and it is probably safe to say that in seven 
cases out of ten an extra ten per cent, can be charged 
without serious objection on the part of the customer. 
A plant that is doing $50,000 worth of business a year 
at a profit of ten per cent, makes very much less than 
if it did only $35,000 worth of business in the same 
time at a profit of twenty per cent. I am aware that 
these assumptions are largely hypothetical, because there 
are few printers who make even the ten per cent., yet 
it is not only possible but proper that twenty per cent. 
profits should be secured on all small work. In small 



I 1 6 PRICE CUTTING. 

job offices orders range in price from $2 to $20 — some- 
times more than the latter figure, but not very frequently. 
Very few customers would object to paying $2.25 to 
$22. Stationers and middlemen succeed in getting even 
larger advances on cost, and why not the printer? 
Recently 1 saw a middleman who obtained a quotation 
of $21 on a lot of printing, and who, after endeavoring 
to get a lower price, finally left the order with the 
printer. Later I chanced to learn that he charged the 
customer $38, leaving a profit of $17 to himself. He 
simply secured the order and did a little of the talking 
for $17, while the printer did all the work and furnished 
the stock, assuming all the risk of spoiling the job in 
process of manufacture (and there is always that risk 
on every piece of work), and he probably made ten 
per cent. — $2. The division of profits in this case 
should have been just the reverse, the printer was 
entitled to the large end, and if all printers could be 
induced to realize this the business would be more 
profitable. The deplorable condition now so frequently 
lamented in the trade would not exist, and it might be 
possible for a printer here and there to amass wealth, 
just as we see men do in other lines of trade. 

The printing business is different from most manu- 
facturing lines, in that there never can be an over-pro- 
duction. The business now suffers, perhaps, because 
there are too many producers of printing, but if it were 
possible to go on producing and putting the product 
into stock, the condition would be even worse than 
that which existed in the bicycle business in 1898, 
when all the manufacturers had more wheels than the 
public would use. The liquor business does not seem 
to be greatly affected by the number of saloons in 



PRICE CUTTING. I 1 7 

existence, because there is a large margin of profit on 
the sales. If liquor dealers should try to compete with 
each other on prices, and cut their charges in half they 
would be obliged to do more than double their present 
amount of business to make as much money as they 
do at present. This fact seems to be universally known 
and acted upon. Notwithstanding that every small 
liquor dealer knows that the glass of beer that he sells 
for five cents costs but one cent we never hear of any 
trying to get all the trade by selling it for three cents 
a glass. It seems strange that saloon-keepers should 
be better business men than printers, yet it certainly 
looks as if they were. 

Brother printer, if you have been guilty of price 
cutting, just stop a little while and reflect that it is 
not necessary for you to get every job in sight, but 
rather that you should aim to secure a fair profit on 
everything that you handle. By pursuing this course 
you will not have to work so hard and you will have 
something to show for your labor. Remember the 
busiest printer is not always the most prosperous 
printer. Look back over your books if you have been 
in business five years, and figure out where you would 
be now if you had rejected all the unprofitable work 
that came your way and besides that had charged ten 
per cent, more on all the orders that would have stood 
the price. If this will not cure you of price * cutting, 
nothing will. 

There would be less difficulty in dealing with men 
who undercharge if the average employee were made 
better acquainted with the actual cost of producing 
printing. If proprietors would occasionally take an 
hour and explain to employees all the items that go to 



Il8 PRICE CUTTING. 

swell the cost there would be fewer employees setting 
up in business for themselves and cutting prices to get 
work. Many and many a bright young printer has 
started up for himself with an entirely mistaken notion 
as to what he must charge to come out even. The 
average journeyman learns that from $1.50 to $2 per 
thousand are common charges for cylinder presswork, 
and he reasons that the wages of the feeder and part 
time of the pressman cost but $3 to $4 per day, and 
that possibly the ink, oil and wear and tear may run 
up the cost to $5, so that if a cylinder produces $10 
to $15 worth of work in a day, that the proprietor 
clears $5 to $10. With these erroneous notions he 
goes into business and becomes a price cutter, doing 
presswork for $1 a thousand and worrying along for a 
year or two until he either learns better or makes a 
failure. 

Can we, as employing printers, blame anybody but 
ourselves for this sort of thing .^ Can we not prevent 
it by educating our employees so that when they 
embark in trade for themselves they will not be a 
menace to us ? Is it not a pare of our duty when teach- 
ing men the trade to instruct them how to ascertain 
the cost of work that they may not deceive them- 
selves ? If this course were generally followed, would 
there not be more good printers willing to retain places 
as foremen and superintendents at comfortable salaries 
rather than entering into competition with their former 
employers ? In every city there is almost sure to be a 
printer or two of the price-cutting class who have been 
developed by ignorance and whose endeavor seems 
to be not to get good prices for printing but to get 
all the printing at any price. Of course such men 



PRICE CUTTING. I I9 

eventually learn to their sorrow that their course was a 
mistaken one, but when this knowledge comes the 
evil has been done to them and to their competitors; 
and when such price cutters have been brushed aside 
by the inexorable laws of trade that require a profit 
for a continuance in business, then, unfortunately, some 
other over-zealous and under-informed printers rise to 
take their places, and so the demoralization in trade is 
kept up. If means were devised for making such men 
see the error of their ways quite early in their careers, 
it would be a great boon to the trade as a whole. 

There are printers who know the cost of work, but 
who deceive themselves as to their ability to rush work 
through, believing that they can produce work more 
cheaply than their competitors. It is a mistake for any 
printer to assume that he is smarter than those who 
compete with him for trade, and that his clever man- 
agement enables him to get out his work lo or 15 
per cent, cheaper than others. Such men are usually 
hustlers themselves and calculate that the proper time 
charge on a job is the time that they themselves 
would require for its execution, whereas the proper time 
charge on a job is the average time that the average 
workman would consume in getting it out. The printer 
who really is smarter than his fellows can always be 
depended upon to charge enough for his work, and if 
he can rush it through in less than the average time 
he will know enough to pocket this legitimate profit 
and not give it away, 

Olher printers there are who mean to charge fair 
prices for their work, but who are continually cutting 
rates to new customers in order to "get in" on their 
trade. They call this giving ** special" prices, but to 



120 PRICE CUTTING. 

my notion special prices are always unprofitable prices 
and fail to bring any trade that is worth having. The 
man who brings his printing to a certain office because 
he has had a special price is looking for *something 
more of the same sort. He is spoiled for the paying 
of regular prices, and wants more for the money than 
the printer can afford to give. I have nothing but 
condemnation for this sort of price cutting. Born of 
fallacious reasoning and developed by mistaken selfish- 
ness, it has nothing to commend or excuse itself, but 
is wholly and unqualifiedly bad in theory and ruinous 
in practice. 

The custom of taking "fillers" is another form of 
price cutting. This error originates in the notion that 
a printer can afford to take work at less than regular 
rates if by so doing he can fill in the idle time in his 
pressroom — or it may be the composing-room. He rea- 
sons that he is doing $i,ooo worth of business a month 
at a cost of $900, and that he has facilities for doing 
$600 more worth of work, which could be turned out 
without any increase of his general expenses. In other 
words, the labor cost on this extra $600 a month would 
be but $300, and by cutting the price on that extra 
work to $500, he sees a way to make $200 more a 
month. This reasoning is plausible and deceives manv, 
and probably will go on deceiving printers as long as 
competition exists. But it is all wrong, and must prove 
disastrous in the long run, because it does not take 
into consideration all the conditions. 

The printer who cuts prices and takes a filler robs 
some other printer of a job that is paying a legitimate 
profit, and at the same time he spoils a customer and 
establishes a rate on certain work that is profitless to any 



PRICE CUTTING. 121 

office doing all work at such prices. These things 
soon react on the printer who takes fillers. The com- 
petitors who lose the work on which he has cut the 
price are very apt to cut him in return, in order to 
make employment for their presses. Without profitable 
work to carry the general expense the office cannot 
be supported, since fillers are taken without regard to 
the items of general expense. The demoralization of 
customers and competitors that follows the taking of 
fillers always more than offsets any imaginary immediate 
gains obtained by filling up an office with work. It is 
not always the printery rOshed with orders that yields 
the best returns, but rather the one in which the 
manager extracts a profit from every job that he 
touches. 

George H. Benedict, a leading Chicago electrotyper, 
was so impressed with the craft's need of education in 
the matter of taking fillers that in February, 1899, he 
offered through the Inland Printer, $100 in prizes for the 
best essays on ''The Fallacy of Fillers." Mr. Benedict's 
own method of explaining the fallacy is found in the fol- 
lowing dialogue, which is reproduced in full from the 
Inland Printer: 

Question. What is your business ? 

Answer. Printer. 

Q. Is printing a profitable business? 

A. Not very^ there is only a living in it, and not much 
of a future. 

Q. What is the reason printing is not profitable ? 

A. There is too much competition, consequently prices 
are very low. 

Q. Do you ever take orders at prices that are not profit- 
able ? 

A. Sometimes I do when we are not busy. 

Q. Will you explain why you are willing to do any 
work without profit? 



122 PRICE CUTTING. 

A. Yes. Because when we are not busy we would rather 
take an oider as a " filler" at cost, tnan to have our maciiin- 
ery or men idle. 

Q. What is the occasion for taking the work at cost, 
even as a " filler" ? 

A. Others will do the same; they set the price; we take 
it for less when we want it to ''fui in." 

Q Is it not probable that in figuring so close to cost 
you are liable to have a loss ? 

A. Quite likely, but we would not lose as much as we 
should if our machinery were standing still, or the men have 
notning to do. 

Q You say others set the price. If this is correct, how 
do you suppose they feel at the loss of the order i 

A. I don't know anything about that, it is none of my 
business. I am looking out for myself 

Q. If you were to hear another say that would it not 
indicate selfishness ? 

A. Perhaps it would, but "Self-preservation is the first 
law of nature." 

Q. Do you not think all printers have the same views 
of ■' fillers " that you have expressed ? 

A. Undoubtedly; they will all take "fillers" when they 
need them if they get a chance. 

Q If that is the case, is it not probable that the practice 
of taking in " fillers " has its effect in lowering prices on all 
work? 

A. \ don't know about that. When I am busy I get 
all I can for my work, and when 1 am not busy 1 take it at 
any price 1 can get. 

O. Are net all printers alike in that respect? 

A. Quite li!;ely 

Q. Aside from improvements in methods and machinery, 
can you mention any factor that is accountable for the lower- 
ing of prices? 

A. Competition lowers prices. 

Q. Do low prices create an increased demand for print- 
ing ? 

A. I don't know whether they do or not. 

Q. If that is the case, would it not be well to maintain 
a profitable rate for your product and let the " fillers" go to 
the one who names a profitable* price on the wor.v ? 

A. It would be a good tiling for the othei fellow, but 
it would not keep my machinery running, and that ii. what 
1 am interested in. 

Q. As a matter of fact, if you want "fillers*' and every 
other printer wants "fillers" is this practice not a fallacy? 
Are you not, by upholding the practice, doing the trade 
you are in as much harm as you can ? Are you not account- 
able for being in the competition, which you declare is the 
cause of low prices, and if you continue io want "fillers" 
can you expect competition will ever be less keen ? 



PRICE CUTTING. 12} 

A. I presume not. I, like the rest, want to be busy, 
and as long as others apply the theory of "hllers" to keep 
going, 1 must do the same. 

Q. Then the "Fallacy of Fillers" is rather a difficult 
proposition to solve ? 

A. It beats me, and I give it up. 

I cannot conceive how any sane printer after reading 
the above can continue the practice of taking work at 
cut prices to fill in. It is hard to understand why 
intelligent printers should cut prices in any way, yet the 
fact remains that price cutting goes on in every city in 
the country to a greater or less extent, and that this 
has more to do with keeping the craft poor than any 
other existing condition. 

We all know that doctors, lawyers, and professional 
men generally scorn to underbid each other, but rather 
seek the reputation of making high charges, because 
their services are then deemed the more valuable. The 
printer who will but have the courage to take chances 
on losing a little work by keeping up his charges will 
soon fmd that this is one of the secrets of success. It 
is natural for customers to refuse to place much value 
on that which they can buy cheaply, and they assume 
that the printer who makes high charges is more sure 
to give good work than the printer who does it cheaply ; 
and in this w:.y are correct, for only the printer who 
makes proper charges can afford to give the best service. 
Therefore it is that the few printers who know enough 
to charge good prices control most of the good custom, 
while the price cutters get that which is least worth 
having and remain poor. 

Never yet did a printer get rich by cutting prices; 
the most prosperous have been those who charged the 
highest prices, seeking to give customers quality rather 
than cheapness. 



CHAPTER XIII. 

COMPETITORS. 

While the theory of business is to secure a large 
share of work at profitable prices, and while competi- 
tors are alv/ays in the way of one's accomplishment 
of this object, yet it is a serious error to assume that 
competitors are enemies, and that it is a part of one's 
duty as a business man to pull others down in build- 
ing up one's own trade. On the contrary, an employ- 
ing printer should be just as careful in his treatment 
of competitors cs of his customers, and a large meas- 
ure of his success will be dependent upon the character 
he bears amongst those with whom he competes for 
trade. 

I consider that the proper way is to regard competi- 
tors as limited partners in one's business, having some 
interests that are common as well as some that are 
opposed. It is apparent, if there are ten printing offices 
in a city, that the trade must be divided between the 
ten or else go out of town, and the division must 
usually be in such proportion that the smallest and 
weakest of the ten may at least earn a living for its 
proprietor. Such being the case it behooves all to 
consider what things they have in common. These ten 
can regulate the prices of printing in that city up to 



COMPETITORS. 1 25 

the point of competition from other cities, and they are 
certainly foolish if they allow competition among them- 
selves to depreciate prices. The ten have another bond 
in the matter of resisting any possible unfair exactions 
or demands from their employees, which can be done 
by combined action. Another mutual interest exists in 
exchanging the names of undesirable customers, thus 
protecting each other against loss. 

If competing printers will but cultivate one another 
they will find many advantages in reciprocation. Sup- 
pose that in our city of ten printing offices there are 
ten publications given out to local printeries, and that 
five of the offices are doing them on yearly contracts. 
The other five want this work to make steady em- 
ployment for the men, and cut the rates so as to secure 
the work. Thus the publications are seesawed year 
after year, from office to office, always at a lower rate. 
How much more sensible for the ten to get together 
and say: ''These ten periodicals must pay us fair prices. 
Let us make a rate applicable to all of them, and all 
agree not to touch them under that price. Then the 
customers may give them to whom they please, and 
some of us will make a little money off them, while 
nobody can lose. " It is so evident that this is the 
proper policy that it is hard to understand why this is 
not the common custom. As a matter of fact we all 
know that the common way is to allow the work to 
be cut and cut in price, by the very men who have to 
do it. This policy is as foolish for master printers as 
it would be for ten workmen in an office where there 
was employment for but nine, to each go to the pro- 
prietor and offer to accept lower wages for fear of 
being dismissed. When employees know better than 



126 COMPETITORS. 

to go about underbidding each other, why do not 
proprietors profit by their example ? 

The treatment of competitors is not altogether a 
question of maintaining prices. It is the duty of every 
man to be a gentleman, and the master printer who 
never forgets this will be ever fair and courteous to 
his business rivals, and never serve one a mean trick, 
or say that behind his back that he would not say to 
his face. Discourtesy to competitors may take various 
forms. The printer who runs down the work of another, 
or unfairly decries his facilities is guilty of discourtesy. 
If a competitor's work be absolutely bad, so as not to 
be in the same class with yours, and customers quote 
his prices against you, it does not require very much 
tact to make the customer see the difference without 
descending to abuse of the other printer. A good way 
in such a case is to say: ''Well, if Jones has offered to 
print that for you for $ioo, I have no doubt that he 
will put §100 worth of work into the job, for he is an 
honest man; but I cannot do that job in the way that I 
consider that it should be done for less than $125, or I 
should lose money, just as would a dealer who offered 
you a pair of shoes with a $5 value for $3. I have 
nothing to say against Mr. Jones, his methods, or his 
prices, but I find that it pays me best to do work like 
that — and that — (showing samples) and to charge what 
it is worth. " 

Is not this more gentlemanly, and quite as likely 
to preserve the customer, as if you should say: 
*'Why do you go to that man Jones .^ He has noth- 
ing but old type and worn out presses, and does not 
know how to do good work." Such talk would 
sooner or later be carried back to Jones, who would 



COMPETITORS. 1 27 

learn to hate you and damage you whenever he saw a 
chance. 

If a competitor is your equal in the production of 
work, it is even more culpable to decry his efforts. 
If asked to comment on the work of such a man it is 
always best to admit his merits frankly, as by saying: 
** Smith is a good workman and a fair competitor; I 
have nothing to say against him." When Smith learns 
that you speak thus of him, he will be very apt to 
speak well of you, and sometime when you meet it 
will be easy for you to arrive at understandings for the 
maintenance of prices. 

Another form of discourtesy towards competitors 
lies in the taking of employees from others without 
fair notice. If you want a workman employed by 
another, and take him away when the other wants 
him, he may retaliate by taking one of your best men, 
the total results being a feeling of enmity between two 
employers, and two workmen receiving mcreased wages. 
If an employee of a competitor comes to you looking 
for a place, and you want him, it is best to say: "I 
will not hire you while in Mr. Blank's employ; if you 
were through with him, I should be glad to make a 
place for you, but I won't do anything that Mr. Blank 
might construe to be unfair." If the man then says 
that he will give Blank a fortnight's notice, you will 
do well to write Blank a polite note stating the exact 
circumstances, and adding that you want the man, but 
will not take him if objected to by Mr. Blank. By 
this course you will probably get the man, as Blank 
will be apt to conclude that if the man wants to 
change it would be unwise to try and keep him, and 
you will establish a reputation for fairness with Blank, 



128 COMPETITORS. 

which should be to the advantage of both. Other 
competitors will hear of it and decide that you are a 
square man, and when you have business with them 
you will find that they trust you. 

Always try to help out a competitor when he is in 
trouble, as from breakdowns, fire or strike. Help him 
get out his work, if necessary, lending him your presses 
at night, and assure him that you will not endeavor to 
steal his customers during his trouble, thus adding to 
his misfortune. Do not think that by doing these 
things you are making sacrifices, for be assured that 
such good turns will pay better in the long run than 
will any small meannesses that bring in present cash, 
but which create ill will. 

Right here I want to say a word for what the 
Typothetse is doing along these lines of developing 
good-fellowship and fraternal feeling among employing 
printers. There ought to be a branch of the organiza- 
tion in every city of over 15,000 population, and every 
reputable printer in cities where a local organization 
exists should become a member and learn to work 
with his brother printers for the common good. We 
see trusts forming on every hand, because in so many 
lines of trade there is economy in the coming together 
of the houses that do a large business. A trust is 
impractical in the printing industry, but it is practical 
for the master printers to get together and work together 
along certain lines. This is the work that the Typoth- 
etse has laid out for itself, a work in which it has 
accomplished a great deal. If you are a member you 
know its benefits. If you are not, do not remain 
without and decry the institution. Do not be a croaker, 
saying: "You cannot get printers to stay together; 



COMPETITORS. 1 29 

they will talk pleasantly to your face, and then go 
away and cut you," and so on. Ten to one the man 
who talks this way is as much distrusted by his fel- 
low-printers as anybody he distrusts. Be manly, and 
treat your fellow-craftsmen like honorable men. Put 
them upon their honor, and you will find them 
as honorable a class of men as can be found any- 
where. By joining the Typothetae you put yourself in 
the way of cultivating the spirit of fairness in competi- 
tion. 

I know members of the Typothetae who will never 
give a figure on a large job that bears the imprint of 
another Typothetae member without first consulting 
with the member who does the work. 1 know another 
Typothetae member, who after doing business forty 
years in a city, and receiving a testimonial on his birth- 
day from his fellow typotheters, was able to say in 
response that his heart was full of gratitude to find 
that after so many years of active competition in one 
city that every competitor in the place was his friend. 
1 know another Typothetae member who has repeatedly 
made public offers to give a portion of his time to 
any beginner in business to assist him in knowing how 
to charge and how to run a printing office successfully. 
He does not claim any philanthropy in this, saying that 
he does it because he objects to competing with igno- 
rance. 1 will not pretend that such men as I have 
just cited are the rule, but the f^ict that some of them 
have been developed in the Typothetae speaks vol- 
umes for the possibilities of the organization as a 
means ot bringing master printers together for the 
common good. 

For the benefit of those not familiar with the work- 



130 COMPETITORS. 

ings of a Typothetse, I will cite the objects stated in 
the incorporation of the New York body : 

To foster trade and commerce, to reform abuses in trade, 
to protect trade and commerce from unjust and unlawful 
exactions, to diffuce accurate and reliable information among 
its members as to the standing of merchants, to acquire, 
preserve and disseminate valuable information relating to the 
printing interests of this and other cities, to produce uni- 
formity and certainty in the customs and usages of trade, to 
settle differences between its members, and to promote a 
more large and friendly intercourse between printers and 
between merchants. 

Of course the organization serves a valuable end in 
offsetting any possible aggressions of labor organizations, 
which in their zeal for their own interests sometimes 
overlook the fact that employers have to arrange mat- 
ters to make a profit. But it also presents many minor 
advantages, among which may be cited these, taken 
from a New York Typothetse circular: 

1. Of telephoning or writing to the rooms for information 
as to the credit of customers who have dealt with other 
members. 

2. Of enquiring for further particulars as to any names 
entered on the list of undesirable customers. 

3. Of sending in poor accounts for collection. No charge 
if no collection is made, 10 per cent, if collected. 

4. Of taking books from the library, which is the finest 
collection of works on printing in the world. 

5. Of securing names from the register of desirable 
persons as superintendents, foremen, compositors, pressmen, 
etc. 

6. Of entering remonstrance against price-cutting by any 
member of the trade. 

7. Of attending a lunch given without charge by the 
Typothetae at every regular meeting, and affording oppor- 
tunity for increasing social acquaintance. 

8. Of using the rooms for business appointments, etc., 
at any time. 

At this date the Typothetse has local organizations 
in thirty-three cities of the United States and Canada. 



COMPETITORS. I3I 

It has existed as a national body for thirteen years, and 
has developed a marvelous capacity for usefulness during 
that period. I believe that the printing trade is just 
beginning to learn the advantages of co-operation, and 
that the next twenty years will see enormous develop- 
ment along these lines. Those printers who are the 
first to recognize this, joining the Typotheta^, and work- 
ing for co-operative developement, will be the first to 
reap its benefits. 

Those who would profit most by membership in 
the Typothetce should be regular attendants at the 
meetings, and workers in committee, etc., for thus they 
keep in closest touch with all that is going on in the 
trade, and are best able to shape the course of their 
own business to meet circumstances. A yet further 
advantage that comes to members who are active, lies 
in the associations, acquaintances and friendships that 
develop with competing printers. We are all too prone 
to think that our competitors are mean fellows, but 
when we meet them in the Typothetse and become 
social, we often discover that they are of the very best 
sort, and, learning to trust them, we are able to nego- 
tiate understandings that are mutually advantageous. 
For instance, suppose that A, B, C and D are all mem- 
bers of the Typothetse, and become well acquainted. 
Some day they meet on the business of a committee. 
It is generally known that each of the four does prac- 
tically all the work of certain large commercial concerns, 
and that if any one were to lose any of such large 
customers, that the work would probably be offered to 
one of the others present. A says: "Gentlemen, I have 
been thinking that we four ought to have enough 
confidence in each other by this time to know that we 



1 32 COMPETITORS. 

can trust any one of our number. Now, would it not 
be a sensible thing for us to come to this understanding: 
let each man here pledge his honor that he will not 
figure on any of the large work now being done by 
another of the quartette, without first having a talk 
with him, and giving opportunity for an understanding 
that will prevent us from cutting each other.?" All 
four will probably see the force of the argument, and 
agree to the conditions. Such an arrangement can be 
made only where personal confidence exists, and such 
person:.l confidence is seldom inspired in any other way 
than through acquaintance developed in the Typothetse. 

I do not urge these things with a view that a com- 
bination of printers should put up prices on the public 
beyond a reasonable figure, because 1 know that to be 
impossible in a trade that suffers from so much com- 
petition. But I do urge that master printers co-operate 
for the maintenance of fair prices that will yield a proper 
return for the investment of money, experience, brains 
and energy essential to the conduct of a printing plant. 
There are few lines of business that require at once so 
much technical knowledge and so much general business 
sagacity as printing, and the man or firm that has 
spent years in acquiring these is entitled to adequate 
returns. 

The master printer who has an established business 
and good trade should protect himself from loss through 
the competition of price cutters by seeking to educate 
them up to his own standard. When a young firm 
starts in business it is very common for them to seek 
work by offering reduced prices. 1 fear that it is the 
most common method of the beginner in business. 
Under such circumstances it is a wise thing for the 



COMPETITORS. 1 33 

proprietor of an older or larger printery affected by 
such competition, to invite a conference with the young 
firm, and to show them exactly what printing costs, 
and why they are injuring the trade as well as them- 
selves. There are times when it may even pay to farm 
out work to a competitor who insists on doing printing 
below cost. If a young firm are offering to do press- 
work that is worth $1.50 per 1,000 impressions for 
only $1 per 1,000, and a neighboring large printer gives 
them an order from his place, and after concluding the 
contract says: "I give this to you because I find that 
you will do it 25 per cent, cheaper than 1 can turn it 
out in my pressroom, and I propose to save that and 
let you wear out your presses." Such talk, backed up 
with the orders, will often set the newcomers in 
business to figuring, with the result that they learn a 
thing or two, and are educated to a higher plane. 

I believe that Benjamin Franklin was the first Ameri- 
can printer to adopt the theory of treating a competi- 
tor with absolute fairness. When he began publishing 
a newspaper in Philadelphia, his competitor and prede- 
cessor in the field controlled the post-office, and used 
the mail carriers for the delivery of his own sheet, but 
denied the service to Franklin. When, in the course 
of events, Franklin came to control the post-office, he 
accorded to his rival the same privilege that he then 
enjoyed for the first time for his own newspaper. The 
public like to see fairness in business, and they will 
avoid patronizing a mean man. Franklin understood 
this and so should every man of types. 

A good motto for every employing printer would be 
this paraphrase of the Golden Rule : " Treat your com- 
petitor as you would have him treat you." 



CHAPTER XIV. 

PROFIT, AND HOW IT SHOULD BE FIGURED. 

The object of doing business is to make a profit. 
The man who confuses profit with salary earned makes 
a mistake, for every man who has the ability to run a 
business can command a good salary without risking 
any money in trade. The printer embarks in business 
and takes the risks in order to earn more than a salary. 
The man who gets only a salary out of his business 
earns no profits; usually he is even less independent 
than the man on salary, for in every customer he has 
a master, instead of the one master he would have if 
employed. To get at real, actual, net profit, it is nec- 
essary to allow a sufficient interest on the capital, and six 
per cent, has been commonly regarded as the proper 
allowance for the use of such capital. In the printing 
business it is also essential to make allowance for the 
replacing of the type every five or six years, and of the 
presses every ten to twenty years. 

It is not really very difficult to figure out these things, 
and thus discover when there is a real profit, yet a 
vast number of master printers never go into such 
details, and are prone to deceive themselves in such 
fashion as this: *'My books show that I have drawn 
$2,000 this year, and have $200 more in the bank than 
a year ago, and an excess of $300 balance of good 



PROFIT, AND HOW IT SHOULD BE FIGURFD. I 3^ 

accounts receivable, as against the balance last year, 
and have bought $700 worth of new material; therefore 
I have made $3,200 this year in clear profits — not a bad 
showing on a business in which I have $15,000 in- 
vested — in fact it is just 21/3 per cent." 

Such talk is very plausible, but may be entirely 
deceptive. On such a showing a plant may be losing 
considerable money instead of paying a protU; let us 
look at the details: In the first place, a man who can 
run a $15,000 plant successfully is worth $2,000 salary. 
He can get such a figure in almost any large city in the 
country, so we must charge off against the cash sur- 
plus as follows: 

Salary of proprietor, $2,000 

Six per cent, interest on $15,000, . . 900 

To keep plant up-to-date and serviceable, 1,500 
To make up balance of depreciation, . 750 

Total, $5,150 

Per contra — 

Cash drawn, $2,000 

Cash in bank, 200 

Balance on books, . . . . . 300 

New material a^ded, 700 

Total, $3,200 

This shows an actual loss for the year of . , $1,950 

These figures exhibit what may be the cold facts in 
such a case. It is very natural for a printer proprietor 
to assume, from the fact of his cash balance having 
increased, that he is making money; but there comes a 
time when he must replace his machinery and renew 
his type, and if he has not provided for this from year 
to year, he will learn in due course that he has had no 
actual profits, for he will have no money with which 
to replenish and continue business. 



136 PROFIT, AND HOW IT SHOULD BE FIGURED. 

How is the printer to avoid this misleading of him- 
self? How is he to know that he really is or is not 
making a profit ? Only by keeping in exact touch 
with the condition of his plant, and learning just what 
it is worth every year, and discriminating carefully 
between gross profit and net profit, can he be sure that 
he is making money. He must always bear in mind 
that the gross profit is not the real, actual profit. It 
is only after making the deductions stated above that 
one can get at the net profit, which is the actual 
thing. 

In order not to be misled in calculating profits the 
printer should be very careful in estimating and placing 
valuation on plant and material. As soon as type or 
presses are placed in use or operation there is a depre- 
ciation in selling value. It would cost the original 
price to replace the material, yet it has lost in intrinsic 
value. Sold under the hammer it would bring less 
than half the price recently paid. This condition makes 
it very difficult to decide upon a precise valuation. 
The methods of calculating depreciation vary almost as 
much as the men who make thSm. From the very 
nature of the case, there can be no exact method of 
determining the loss to printing material by wear and 
tear, want of use, lack of modernness, etc. Some houses 
will charge all small type bills— as for sorts, or for type 
ordered for a special job — to the general expense account, 
on the principle that such purchases are a necessary 
and continually recurring item, amounting to about so 
much for so many thousand dollars worth of business. 
This method may be a good one in so far as it assists 
in obtaining a true idea of profit in the yearly balance; 
but it is bad in that it leads to charging all jobs with 



PROFIT, AND HOW IT SHOULD BE FIGURED. 1 37 

a percentage of the cost of sorts, etc., that are required 
for only a certain proportion of the jobs. 

My own idea is that type bought on purpose for 
a piece of work should have half its value marked off 
and charged to the job, and that new type that has 
steady use in an office should be marked off 25 per 
cent, in value as soon as it is in the case and in gen- 
eral use. Machinery also depreciates rapidly, though it 
wears longer than the type. There are nowadays so 
many improvements made in presses that it often 
becomes desirable to discard machines before they are 
half worn out. It is not uncommon to see cylinders 
sold for $300 or $400 that were once worth $1,500 to 
$2,500, and which are yet good machines, their only 
fault being that as money earners they cannot compete 
with the latest products of the manufacturers. All these 
things must be allowed for in calculating depreciation, 
and while in sixteen years nearly all the value must be 
figured off a machine, yet in some cases its value would 
depreciate to nearly nothing in half that period, and in 
others it might retain considerable value for a much 
longer time. Existing conditions must be considered in 
placing the value of machinery and calculating its de- 
preciation. If a press builder makes a cut in price of 
fifteen per cent., users of his machines must figure off 
the equivalent not only from the presses of his make that 
they are using, but from makes that come into com- 
petition, and which are certain to be affected by the cut 
in cost pj'ice. 

There may be those who think that careful calculation 
of depreciation is unimportant, as affecting only the 
interest on the amount involved. In other words, they 
think that if a plant is placed at a valuation of $10, coo 



138 PROFIT, AND HOW IT SHOULD BE FIGURED. 

or of $8,000 in a balance sheet, the difference involved 
is only a question of earning interest on $2,000. This 
is a wrong view. The printer has to deal here with 
principal and not with interest. If he overvalues his 
plant by $1,000 as compared with the previous year, 
he deludes himself as to $i,oco of profit or non-profit 
for that year. If a plant is overvalued for a series of 
years it presents on the books a misstatement of the 
profits during that period, since the excess of valuation 
must be divided amongst, and deducted from, the gross 
profits of those years to show the net or real profits. 
Depreciation must come out some time in actual cash, 
and if it is not figured out at proper times the printer 
thinks that he is making more money than he really 
is, and is led to take work too cheaply, to the eventual 
ruin of his whole business. The danger of such a 
result is present with every master printer who does 
not keep a watchful eye on the manner in which he 
figures his profits. How many, many, printing houses 
we have all seen go to the wall very largely through 
this misunderstanding as to what were the actual profits! 
It is a pitfall that threatens every beginner in business, 
and I cannot too strongly urge upon such the necessity 
of exercising extreme care to avoid self delusion as to 
real earnings. Unless a printer can make a correct 
balance at the end of each year — or oftener — he cannot 
know what are his profits, or whether there are any 
profits, until a period of years have gone by, when the 
lack of means to keep up his material will tell him the 
story only too plainly — and then it may be too late to 
save things by the knowledge that should have been his 
during the regular progress of his business. 

When a man puts $15,000 into a printing plant, 



PROFIT, AND HOW IT SHOULD BE FIGURED. 1 39 

and works that plant for ten years, to come out even 
he should get back out of it: 

An adequate salary; 

Six per cent, for interest; 

A sum to keep his plant up-to-date, which 
amounts to an additional ten per cent. ; and 

A sinking fund, which together with the mar- 
ket value of the plant, will be equal to the 
original investment, and represents five per cent. 

And to come out ahead, which is the object 
of doing business, for which the risks are taken, 
he should get an additional profit, and 

Ten per cent, on the original investment 
ought to be little enough. 

This is not an extravagant statement, but expresses 
very moderately what should be the actual results. 

Such a plant as that referred to, representing an 
original cost of $15,000, should yield in ten years $66,500 
of gross profits; that is: 

$20,000 salary; 
9,000 interest; 

15,000 to keep the plant up-to-date; 
7,500 to make up balance of depreciation, and 
15,000 profit. 

Divided by years this is $6,650 a year of gross 
profits. If the printer finds that he is not getting such 
a return out of his business, he should find out at once 
why he is not securing the profits that are rightly his, 
and either arrange to make such a profit or admit to 
himself that he has not the capacity to make his plant 
do any more than pay him a salary. 

A knowledge of the cost of producing printing is 
requisite to the earning of profits, and a careful study 



140 PROFIT, AND HOW IT SHOULD BE FIGURED. 

of the chapter devoted to that subject is recommended 
to the readers of this book. Let the master printer 
always remember that while actual cost includes salary, 
interest, etc., yet that the price to the customer must 
always bear an extra margin to allow for the profit. 
There may have been a time when printers were simply 
workmen looking for days' w^ges, and when a profit 
was not considered necessary so long as a living was 
earned; but that day was before the introduction of 
improved machinery. A cobbler or a barber can afford 
to work for wages where no capital worth mentioning 
is risked in the business, but the printer of the twentieth 
century finds it absolutely essential to invest a large 
amount of money in perishable goods in order to produce 
good printing economically, and only by making a 
positive profit from every job can he hope to be a gainer 
in the lonor run. 

The printer who neglects to charge a profit on side 
lines is simply doing work for others for nothing. 
Why should he take orders for engraving, binding, ruling, 
paper stock, etc., and furnish the capital or credit to 
secure them, without charging for the risk and labor 
involved ? A part of the general expense of a printing 
office is properly chargeable to such side lines, and they 
should also bear a percentage for error, accident, insur- 
ance, etc. If an office does $100,000 worth of business 
in a year, and $10,000 goes for office salaries, collecting, 
bad bills, etc., a proportion of this $10,000 should be 
borne by the work that is done outside. If the $100,000 
of work represents $20,000 of paper and $10,000 worth 
of binding, ruling, engraving and electrotyping, we should 
then charge $3,000, which is ten per cent., against this 
outside work to cover cost, and when we add the 



PROFIT, AND HOW IT SHOULD BE FIGURED. idl 

profit, fifteen per cent, or $4, 500 is little enough. The 
printer cannot afford to tigure to get less than fifteen 
per cent, out of these outside lines. Since it is not 
practical to charge more than ten per cent, advance on 
large orders for paper, it becomes necessary to charge 
more than fifteen per cent, on small orders to secure 
the proper average margin on all outside work. On 
items of $5 and under, an advance of twenty-five per 
cent, or even more is proper, because there is always 
some extra time and bother attached that cannot be 
charged for directly, but which must be made up in 
some way. 

Few printers will neglect to add the charge of five 
per cent, to paper to cover waste, because that is a 
direct expense that must be paid for in advance by 
buying more paper than has to be delivered on the 
finished job. Five per cent, for waste may be a little 
high for long runs on plain work, but it is too little on 
color work or short runs. But because the handling 
of paper is an indirect expense, many printers neglect 
to charge the extra ten or fifteen per cent, for buying 
and carrying, and being responsible for it. Because the 
expense is indirect, it is none the less real, and must 
be met and paid for in the long run. If customers 
object to paying this percentage on the cost price of 
the paper, it is well to remind them that they are getting 
the benefit of the printer's knowledge, as well as shift- 
ing upon him certain risks. If the customer buys direct 
of a paper dealer he may save a few cents on a ream, 
only to learn that he has selected a grade of paper 
that involves a greater charge for presswork, as do 
some plate papers; or the customer may commit the 
error of buying paper to size, when the presswork 



142 PROFIT, AND HOW IT SHOULD BE FIGURED. 

requires that it be bought double size, thus doubling 
the number of impressions he has to pay for. Blunders 
of this sort are avoided when the printer does the buying, 
and a little judicious explanation of these points will 
show the customer who wants to buy close that it is 
as well to pay the printer's advance on such side lines, 
and thus insure the quality and correctness of the product. 

In engraving and electrotyping work, the printer 
almost invariably is called upon to give a portion of 
his knowledge to the benefit of the work, and he is 
entitled to his pay therefon While fifteen per cent, is 
the ordinary advance to be charged the customer on 
these lines, there are times when it is proper to charge 
much more. Suppose, for instance, that the engraving 
is of an elegant grade, requiring careful choice of the 
best methods of drawing, photographing, processing, 
selection of paper and ink, etc., then the printer who 
oversees all these items, and makes them harmonious, 
is entitled to charge a further advance. Remember 
that this advance should represent more than a return 
for the extra labor; it should include an extra profit, 
for without that profit the printer has no business to 
bother with these side lines. 

The printer should ever bear in mind that the time 
to make a profit on work is always now. Deferring a 
profit IS simply a way of losing a profit. 

Knowing what cost is, and what is requisite to the 
production of profit, it only remains for the printer 
who would be successful to see to it that the profit is 
never sacrificed on the work going out of his establish- 
ment. By following this rule he has a sure thing, but 
in order to follow it, he requires to know what is cost 
and what is profit. 



CHAPTER XV. 

BUYING. 

One way of adding to the earnings of a printing 
office is to buy with judgment. We all know printers 
who habitually pay five to ten per cent, more than they 
should for the goods they buy, through pure shiftless- 
ness, never looking about for closer prices, and never 
discounting a bill to get the lowest figure. Though 
they pay the highest prices, yet their custom is not 
sought by dealers, as they are slow pay — they cannot 
well be otherwise — for they make so little that they 
are always behindhand with everything. There are 
printers of a better grade, who do good work and 
make a profit thereon, but who have no talent for 
buying, accepting almost anything that a glib salesman 
chooses to talk off to them. They buy stock that 
they do not need, because they are told that "this is 
a job lot," and then the stock lies on their hands a long 
while, and is finally worked off at a loss. 

The master printer in doing $10,000 worth of 
business usually spends $5,000 for labor, $2,500 for 
stock, and $1,500 for other matters; in other words he 
buys nine-tenths as much as he sells, and therefore he 
should exercise as much care in buying to get a profit as 
in selling to get a profit, else he cannot compete success- 
fully with others who are careful buyers. In purchasing 



144 BUYING. 

labor he should seek not to buy it cheaply but to get that 
which is best for his work. A three-dollar-a-day man is 
often cheaper than another man at two dollars. Of course 
no employer can afford to give all his profits to his 
men, but he can afford to be liberal with those who 
appreciate liberality and work to give him results. That 
is the kind of labor to buy. This feature is dealt with 
more fully in the chapter on "Management of Employ- 
ees." Just now we are concerned only with the actual 
buying of labor, and endeavoring to emphasize the point 
that here a wise economy calls for quality first and price 
later. Where the matter of wages is regulated by union 
scales that it is unwise to interfere with, judginent is 
called for in the selection of good workers, and the 
ability to pick out men of the right sort is quite as 
valuable as the capacity for keeping them engaged. 

The buying of paper stock calls for wide experience. 
A pnper which superficially appears to match another 
is sometimes a very inferior article. A buyer of stock 
miust have more than a common knowledge of sizes, 
weights and qualities. He should have means of know- 
ing when a paper is up to weight or when it falls off 
so as to guard against errors. A good pair of scales 
will soon pay for themselves in almost any printing 
office just by detecting errors in weights. It is not 
good business to assume because your paper dealer is 
honest, that clerks who sell the goods by the marks, 
will always furnish you with the weight and quality 
billed; the right way is to have a system of proving 
what you get, which serves as insurance, protecting all 
concerned. 

When we bear in mind that paper costs all the way 
from two cents to fifty cents a pound, that the sizes 



BUYING. 145 

are arbitrary, and that the names are often of not 
positively established meaning, and that the quahty put 
into a grade may vary slightly with each mill producing 
that paper, we must recognize what an uncertain quan- 
tity paper is, and how much judgment the buyer must 
exercise. While it is desirable to buy close and take 
advantage of occasional bargains, it is safest to place 
large orders with concerns of established reputation, 
rather than to seek lower prices from those of whose' 
responsibility you know nothing, since it is always, 
possible for the latter to take an order at any price 
necessary to get the job, and then to fill it with some- 
thing that can be furnished at that time for a profit. 

The printer should be very careful in buying large 
lots of paper, with which he has little experience, to be 
used with special inks. It sometimes happens that the 
paper and ink are not adapted to each other, and if 
this is not discovered until the last moment, when the 
job is on press, and paper or ink has to be changed, 
there is a resultant loss of time of men and machines,, 
cartage, etc., that may be serious. Whenever a job 
involves bringing together any paper and ink whose 
adaptability is not known, such should be fullv estab- 
lished before making the purchase of either the ink or 
the paper. 

Very few printers are judges of the value of inks. 
Only a considerable experience with a grade of ink will 
show the printer about what it is worth to him ; he 
cannot know that the quality of a grade has been 
reduced until after he has stocked up with and used 
an inferior lot of it. The best way is to buy of a reli- 
able house, have them adapt their inks to your papers, 
and give them your trade as long as they serve you 



146 BUYING. 

reasonably and acceptably. Avoid buying job lots of 
ink; they are seldom cheap. 

In buying type, the average printer requires to ex- 
ercise more care against his own weaknesses than 
against the founder's desire to make money out of 
him. Buy large fonts and in series in preference to 
small fonts and odd lots. If possible, buy your type 
at considerable intervals, and in large lots, rather than 
in small driblets, a little every month, as by the former 
method you are more certain of securing everything in 
harmony. 

Never buy second-hand type; it is dear at any price. 

In purchasing machinery, consider tlrst its adapta- 
bility to the work in view. It is a waste to buy a four- 
roller press for cheap newspaper work; but a press 
that IS cheap may not be suited to turning out a cheap 
■grade of work, if it be also slow. Having decided on 
the sort of presses you need, try and make your choice 
■on your own judgment rather than on the arguments 
<of those who want to sell you a particular machine. 
;if you are favorably inclined toward a machine but do 
not know its points thoroughly, and are conscious that 
you are not fully aware of its merits and demerits, go 
and talk with one or two unbiased parties who [use 
similar machines. Thus you will protect yourself Re- 
member that it is the salesman's business to sell you a 
certain press, but, that it is your business to buy what is 
best for you. Always give the preference to makers 
•of reputation and standing, and beware of being the 
first to try a new machine. It may turn out to be a 
good thing, but the chances are that the first machine 
or two of a new kind will bother the purchasers more 
than they save them. 



BUYING. 147 

The printer who is well up in machinery, and who 
perhaps has personal knowledge of the condition of a 
certain press that is second-hand, may often find a 
bargain in presses that have been used. But, unless 
you are very sure of what you are getting, the new 
machines, with a guarantee from a reliable maker, are 
the best to buy. 

Care should be exercised to avoid purchasing any- 
thing that is going out of use, as type that is out of 
fashion, machines that are no longer built or that are 
being superseded by improved styles, paper that may 
not be in regular demand, etc. By reading the trade 
papers and keeping up with the progress of the art a 
printer may qualify himself to exercise a correct judg- 
ment as to when the value of anything is depreciating 
from lack of use, and thus guard against stocking up 
with articles that are not up-to-date. 

There is only one good way to buy, and that is for 
cash. In all lines the cash will secure discounts that are 
greater than the six per cent, value of borrowed money, 
because the man who sells has to charge credit customers 
for collections, etc. Discounts of from two to twenty- 
five per cent, are continually offered the printer for 
prompt cash, yet it is believed that a large majority of 
printers fail to avail themselves of these discounts, in 
which there is just as much profit as there may be in 
the work they handle. Where is the sense in a printer's 
buying $1,000 worth of labor, paper, ink and incidentals 
for a customer, to make ten per cent., and beggaring 
himself so that he loses discounts to the amount of 
$100? Yet many a printer will grab at the $1,000 
job, giving long credit thereon, and hustling to get it 
out, and never give any special attention to the losses 



148 BUYING. 

he sustains from not being able to discount his bills. It 
is not too broad an assertion to state that the printer 
who has the cash can average to save $50 to $100 on 
every $1,000 he spends, as compared with the printer 
who has to ask long time and who gives notes. 

The printer requires to be careful not to buy beyond 
his immediate needs. A sudden rush of work may 
cause him to think that he requires a new cylinder, but 
by the time it arrives the rush may be over, and he 
will be tempted to go out and cut prices to get work, 
thus damaging trade generally to get the money to 
pay for a machine for which he does not have real use. 
Unless there is a certainty that the work is there for a 
machine it is much better to take care of a rush of 
work by either putting on a night force or turning some 
orders over to a neighboring printer on whom you can 
depend. 

There is a science in knowing when to be liberal 
and when to be close in buying. When paper stock 
or machinery are on some one's hands, and hard to 
move, the holder may accept an exceedingly low offer. 
At other times, the printer who tries to buy too closely 
may overreach himself, for if his trade affords no profit, 
good houses will avoid him, and he is forced to deal 
with the irresponsible and to accept poor service. Those 
who sell to the trade must have a fair profit as well 
as the printer, and it is not good economy to try and 
deprive them of such profit; the real economy consists 
in buying only what you have use for, at a fair price, 
and with all the discounts that cash will bring. 



CHAPTER XVI. 

DOING GOOD PRINTING. 

While this book is designed to treat only of the 
business or money-making side of the printing industry, 
and not of the technical side of the art. yet it is so 
imperative that the successful printer should do good 
printing that a chapter on this topic seems requisite to 
rounding out the subject completely. It is assumed 
throughout that the readers are good printers, who know 
their trades properly — anyway it is not the writer's 
mission to teach the intricacies of composition and press- 
work. Yet, there are many pointers as to the doing of 
high grade work, that are of a semi-business nature, 
involving the policy of an establishment, and these it is 
desired to discuss at this writing. 

To do a high grade of work the printer must have: 
First, selected men, who are each and all specially good 
in their respective lines. With superior taste in com- 
position, accurate make-up and proof-reading, and 
pressmen who know their trade thoroughly, we have all 
the essentials of perfect workmanship. Second, a red 
tape system of passing upon or approving each feature 
of a job as it progresses through the establishment. 
This greatly reduces the vexation and loss incident to 
errors, not only typographical, but in number of sheets, 
character of stock, etc. Third, inks furnished appropriate 



150 DOING GOOD PRINTING. 

to the papers employed, and good rollers supplied as 
wanted. Without these the pressman is powerless. 
Fourth, a relentless system of discarding poor or spoiled 
sheets. Even one per cent, of poor sheets delivered to 
a customer detracts seriously from a high class job. 
Fifth, the maintenance of a good summer temperature 
in the pressroom. It is not right to expect good results 
unless this is furnished. Sixth, an intelligent super- 
vision of the whole establishment, to insure harmony 
between departments, and keep everything running 
smoothly. Seventh, the proper material and machinery. 
With all these a high class output is assured; while 
with any one of them lacking, an inferiority in production 
is always likely. 

The printer who would be successful must bear in 
mind that he cannot put himself in the position of 
being able to do the best work at a minimum of cost 
unless he provides the best material. If he starts in 
with an old plant he is seriously handicapped, for he is 
virtually obliged to give customers old type-faces when 
new ones are preferable; or he may be unable to give 
perfect register on color jobs with old and worn 
machines. The highest touches of the art are only 
possible to the concern that can furnish the latest and 
best products of the foundry, and print them on up- 
to-date presses. In striving to do the best work the 
printer will find himself severely handicapped if he has 
not such an equipment. 

The retaining of some man of superior taste to 
direct the character of the work is an essential some- 
times overlooked. I have yet to learn of an establish- 
ment that has secured a reputation for fine work that 
did not include in its personnel some one peculiarly 



DOING GOOD PRINTING. I5I 

gifted with artistic sense, to control and dictate the style 
and quality of the output. Such a man must possess 
characteristics of originality, and an appreciation of that 
which is really good art in printing. If the proprietor 
of an office recognizes that he has not these qualities, 
he should, if possible, secure the services of some one 
who has such capacity. At the same time he must be 
careful not to let his artist-printer run away with him 
in zeal for the production of the beautiful. The printer 
who becomes so engrossed in the execution of fine 
work that he forgets that he is doing it for a profit, 
may be a true artist, but he cannot make money. 
The business management should be such that superior 
taste and ingenuity in printing may be available at all 
times to the customer, but only for a fair price and 
not for love of the art. 

It is well for an office to acquire a distinctive style 
for its commercial work — a something that will come 
to be recognized generally by those who observe fine 
printing. It may be a running on broad bands of 
border, or ornate initials, or embossed headings, or any 
other one thing good in itself that has not been "run 
to death " in the locality. We must recognize that 
there are fashions in taste in printing as in everything 
else, and that these fashions are set by the printers 
themselves, though often unconsciously. There is no 
good reason why they cannot be set deliberately as well 
as accidentally. If the leading office of a city will decide 
on a style and run upon it conscientiously for a year 
or two, it will be found that all the small, surrounding 
printers will be copying that style. Then it will be 
time for the leading printer to consider working up 
another style, in order to keep ahead of the procession 



1^2 DOING GOOD PRINTING. 

and cause business men to recognize that he is the 
leader. 

This setting of a style of commercial work acts as 
an advertisement for a house and costs next to nothing. 
In fact, I am not sure but it is an economy, for it enables 
the printer to use one line of material continuously, and 
accustoms the workmen to obtain the effects with the 
least labor. When the style runs out the material is 
well worn and may be returned to the founder as old 
metal, and a new lot bought to advance some newer 
style. Within a few years there have been runs on 
deckel-edged paper and Bradley type that have pretty 
much swept the country. In the course of events 
these will give way to other things, and in twenty 
years printers may look back with wonder and be sur- 
prised that these things ever were stylish. That this is 
probable may be proved by looking back at the speci- 
mens of ornate printing of a decade or two ago, which 
are strange and ridiculous to the eyes trained to modern 
effects. This is in obedience to a law of human nature 
that craves change, and to another law that results in 
imitation, producing what we call fashions. 

The printer who can set the fashion for his locality 
is bound to achieve a reputation that will bring him 
the chance of doing most of the high class work that 
is executed in his territory. There may be printers 
who will do as good work as the printer with a repu- 
tation, but they do not stand the same opportunity of 
getting high class jobs as the printer who has cultivated 
his reputation by leading taste and fashion. 

The difference between an ordinary job and a high 
class production often involves very little additional cost, 
and yet it counts for a great deal in reputation and 



DOING GOOD PRINTING. I 53 

the bringing to an office of other work that will pay 
well. The selection of good papers has a large bearing 
on the result, and as the cost of the better grades 
comes out of the customer, the printer ought always to 
be willing to advocate good papers, knowing that by 
their use the work will be made more satisfactory. In 
the choice of inks the printer can improve his work by 
judicious use of others than black. The blue-blacks 
almost always look better, as white paper always 
inclines to either blue or yellow, and in either case 
the suggestion of blue in the black ink is beautifying. 
Another good effect is always obtainable by the plain 
lake-red rule around pages, that has a never-tiring 
beauty, placing the work on a higher plane. By sug- 
gesting these things to customers they often may be 
incorporated in orders, and thus tend to elevate the 
average of work turned out and add to the profits. 

Carefulness in excluding spoiled sheets from those 
delivered to the customer adds another element of 
reputation for high class work. The office that desires 
to secure or maintain a place among the very best 
printeries must also be always alive to the keeping up 
with the new things that the founder produces for orna- 
menting work, and bringing them before the public 
ahead of others. 

The use of wide margins is a very neat and costless 
way of improving the appearance of work, that is far 
too much neglected. A wide margin always gives a 
rich effect; a narrow margin always has a cramped, 
skimpy, cheap effect, and if the body type is large, the 
ill effect is strengthened. The employment of ornate 
faces for body type is another method of elevating the 
character of work. By purchasing i co-lb. fonts of a 



154 DOING GOOD PRINTING. 

few handsome faces in sizes from six to eighteen point, 
the printer is able to set up a great deal of commercial 
work in a manner that is much more ornamental than 
if the body matter were set in the ordinary romans or 
old styles. 

it is well to keep at hand a supply of samples of 
pretty half-tone illustrations that are available for use in 
adding to the attractiveness of work. Occasionally such 
can be introduced so as to add materially to a job 
without increasing cost, and more frequently they serve 
to develop some idea in the customer's mind for the 
preparation of original half-tone illustrations for the 
embellishment of the job under consideration. When 
the illustrator is thus called in to increase the beauty 
and attractiveness of the job, the printer not only gets 
his percentage on the engraving, but his office gets the 
credit of the improved character of the work. 

In aiming to produce superior printing, the printer 
must not neglect to provide himself with specimens of 
the efforts of leading printers in other cities. If he be 
deficient in originality he can always borrow plenty of 
ideas in this way, without infringing any copyright or 
courtesy of the trade. 

No office can hope to lead in quality of work that 
does not exercise extreme care in every department to 
insure the production of clean work. How often we 
see otherwise handsome jobs marred by a few leads 
sticking up or by smuts on the margins! The avoiding 
of these is not a question of art, but a matter of vigi- 
lance in overseeing the minor details of production. 

In seeking to add to the high character of small 
work without largely increasing the cost, the wise 
printer will always bear in mind the facility with which 



DOING GOOD PRINTING. I 5^ 

two colors may be run at once on a jobber on the turn- 
and-cut principle. This is a trick too seldom practiced 
though generally known. By cutting out the composi- 
tion in the centre of the distributers, on a jobber having 
cylinder inking apparatus, a different color may be run 
on either end of the press, and the form be divided to 
suit. This method is economical in running small jobs 
of one thousand to five thousand impressions, requiring 
a tint on a certain portion of the design, or one line in 
red to make it particularly effective. 

In order to improve the effectiveness of the large 
work in an office, especial attention should be given 
to type designs, headings and covers. A little extra 
expense of $25 or $50 on a $500 job often adds one- 
half to its general effectiveness. A fine cover may hide 
a multitude of shortcomings. The longer the run the 
less is the proportionate extra cost in perfecting the 
designs that go to make a book or magazine attractive. 
Good book-work is produced by extreme care as to 
well-known details; good magazine or pamphlet work 
is largely dependent upon the quality of the illustra- 
tions, the margins, cover-coloring, etc. ; good commer- 
cial work is dependent upon taste in composition and 
care of details. Only by having efficient help in all 
departments and by the infusing of personal genius and 
unique characteristics into the work can an office expect 
to take front rank as a producer of high class printing. 



CHAPTER XVII. 

THE COMPOSING-ROOM. 

It is generally admitted that the composing-room 
of a printing office is the most difficult department to 
run at a profit. The chances and opportunities for 
wasting time are so great, and the temptation to take 
composition at cost to feed the pressroom is so strong, 
that a vast number of composing-rooms are run year 
in and year out minus any profit, and many of them at 
an actual loss. This is a wrong condition of affairs, that 
appears to have been aggravated rather than improved" 
in many instances by the introduction of composing 
machines, which with proper management should have 
relieved the situation. 

In order to make a composing-room pay, the first 
essential is the proper arrangement of the material. 
Too often the stands, stones, cabinets and cases are 
placed about "any old way," without any real plan for 
convenience, whereas nothing in the printing office calls 
for more care than the locating of all material where 
it may be used without loss of time. The largest item 
of expense in the composing-room is the time of the 
employees; it can be saved by good light and short 
travel between display cases, stones, etc. 

A composing-room should have plenty of light, and 
if the windows are not close together more should be 



THE COMPOSI.nG-ROOM. 157 

put in. For artificial light, the best is the cheapest. A 
cent an hour for an incandescent electric light is of no 
consequence if it enables a compositor to do a cent's 
worth more work in an hour than some cheaper form 
of light. If there are not windows enough to give a 
satisfactory light during the daytime more should be 
inserted in the walls. When good window light is 
provided for, the next essential is the placing of the 
stands by the windows in such a way as to secure a 
good distribution of light on the cases. 

It is a very poor arrangement to place stands in a 
line too deep beyond a window, in a room with a low 
ceiling, so that the workman at the further stand re- 
ceives only a half light. When such space away from 
the windows has to be filled with stands, these should 
not be used for regular composition, but for cases of 
occasional use, that it is desirable to keep out of the 
racks, as head letters, italics, etc., on which there is 
considerable demand. 

In casing display type the wise printer will avoid 
using cases with very small boxes, as the space saved 
is more than lost by the time wasted in getting out 
the types from the little boxes, which are too small for 
the fingers. It is also a mistake to place cases very 
high or very low in cabinets or racks, because it is 
cheaper to provide more floor space than to tire men 
out sitting on their heels or climbing step-ladders to 
set up lines. 

In locating stand-galleys and banks much care 
should be exercised in order that time may not be 
wasted going back and forth between them and the 
cases. This also applies to imposing stones, rule cases, 
lead and furniture racks, etc. Each should be placed 



158 THE COMPOSING-ROOM. 

with a view to saving travel in setting up, proving, 
making-up,. and the hke. 

There is good economy in having plenty of ma- 
terial and keeping it in the cases as much as possible. 
The effort to economize on a few dollars' worth of 
.sorts often results in wasting double the value in time. 
The lack of an extra proof-planer, lead-cutter, benzine 
brush and such trifles, often causes a great waste of 
time. Where is the sense in paying a man thirty cents 
an hour to tie and roll up bits of twine for page cord 
or to chase about looking for a ten cent sponge.^ And 
yet negligence in such little matters as these is apparent 
in three composing-rooms out of every four. 

It pays to have plenty of labor-saving contrivances, 
plenty of quads and sorts of all kinds, plenty of chases, 
plenty of everything and anything that saves time. 
And it is just as important to keep material where it 
can be used readily as it is to have a good assortment 
in stock. For this reason it is a bad policy to keep 
many forms standing. Some will argue that by keep- 
ing type standing there is often a saving by reason of 
its being ready for a further edition, should one be de- 
manded, but this view ignores the loss of convenience 
that arises from the releasing of the sorts. Nothing is 
more wasteful than time spent in picking sorts. I 
abominate this practice, and would rather see a com- 
positor looking out of the window at a circus parade 
than hunting through forms for sorts. The former 
occupation at least has the merit of brightening the 
man's spirits and rendering him capable of more cheer- 
ful effort after the last elephant and clown have passed 
out of sight, whereas the latter practice is not only a 
dead waste at the time, but may cause a loss later if 



THE COMPOSING-ROOM. I 59 

the sorts have to be replaced, or if their removal causes 
a pi. 

In a large office the only good way of securing 
proper distribution is to put a competent man in charge 
of it, and make him responsible for the condition of 
all type-cases and supplies of sorts. He should have 
such help as he requires; often apprentices or boys will 
do very well, and can be used to advantage if they are 
painstaking, as care is required rather than skill. I do 
not believe in placing compositors on the dead stone 
when work is dull, as this invites loafing; though I 
recognize that all rules fail in emergencies, and that 
there are times when a foreman has to put all hands 
on some rush work, neglecting distribution for a day 
or two, and then put a few compositors on distribu- 
tion to wipe out the accumulation. The system is 
bad in principle, however, and when rush work re- 
quires such action an extra charge should be placed in 
the bill for upsetting the routine of the office. 

Men are all different, and must be handled intelli- 
gently and not as machines, for a knowledge of men is 
of great value in the composing-room, in order that they 
may be used so as to make the most of their talents, 
dispositions, etc. It is quite as important to distribute 
the work properly among the compositors as it is to 
distribute it suitably among the presses. By recognizing 
the different ability of particular men, and keeping each 
as far as possible in the line of work in which he makes 
the greatest progress, general results may be considerably 
increased. A man with a special knack for imposition 
should be kept at stone work, in preference to allowing 
each compositor to impose his own forms. In every fair- 
sized office there are generally one or two men who 



l6o THE COMPOSING-ROOM. 

can do tabular work twice as fast as some others, 
though the* men who fail in table work may be effi- 
cient in other regards. With a force of compositors on 
miscellaneous job and book work, it is the business of 
a foreman to know who can handle display work with 
the best results, who can set figure work expeditiously 
and accurately, who are the fastest compositors on 
straight matter, who will prove most useful on distribu- 
tion, corrections, and all the various details of work 
in the department. By remembering these things he 
can apportion the work most advantageously and secure 
the best results for the talent in hand. 

Most master printers fail to appreciate fully the great 
amount of time expended in the composing-room on 
other work than direct composition. Nothing but an 
accurate record will convince the average proprietor of 
the actual facts as to his composing-room. 1 have 
before me a composing-room record in which the 
showing for six years is that the distribution required 
almost half the time of composition, and that the dis- 
tribution, proof-reading, corrections and make-up taken 
together equalled the composition proper. This tabula- 
tion did not take into account any superintendence or 
fixed charges. It is probably an average showing and 
demonstrates that there is an immensity of work outside 
of direct composition upon which economy may be ex- 
ercised. Another proof of the amount of this often dis- 
regarded labor is found in the record of a number of 
large New York offices, demonstrating an average cost 
of twenty-seven cents per one thousand ems for hand- 
ling type matter after the compositor had earned his 
wage for setting and correcting. There are master 
printers who hold the idea that this doubling of the 



THE COMPOSING-ROOM. l6l 

direct labor of composition is unnecessary, and that by- 
hustle and extra good management they can avoid most 
of it. This is a delusion; by good management the 
indirect costs of composition can be kept down, but 
they cannot be diminished to any considerable extent. 
Superior management may check a variety of small 
leakages, as variously suggested in this chapter, and 
whatever cost is cut down by labor-saving devices and 
close watch over details, should go to the printer in 
increased profit. Because 1 hint at a variety of ways in 
which this secondary cost of composition may be 
reduced, 1 hope no reader will draw the inference that 
I believe that the cost of composition can ordinarily be 
kept down to less than double the original time cost 
of setting up matter, except in newspaper offices, where 
there is full copy and every convenience for rushing. 
By basing charges on the actual experiences of many 
offices you are safe, and if you can reduce a trifle of 
cost here and there by close management, you have 
earned it and it should be yours, not the customer's. 
Never, never gamble in advance on the cleverness of 
your management, by making prices upon the assump- 
tion that your cost will be less than that of your 
competitors with the same facilities. 

Where composition is done by hand, the piece system 
is almost always preferable, purely on the score of 
economy. To illustrate: In a city where the piece scale 
is thirty-five cents and the week scale $i6, a composi- 
tor working by the week must set almost 46,000 ems 
to earn his $16. This is much above the average pro- 
duction, as week hands cannot be expected to average 
above 35,000 ems unless there is much fat matter, and 
they will not do that on lean, solid type. Piece hands 



l62 THE COMPOSING-ROOM. 

will set more type in the same number of hours than 
time hands, but even piece hands cannot be expected 
to average 40,000 ems weekly on book work that has 
to be evenly spaced. 

In machine composition opinions differ as to the 
advisability of employing men by the week or piece. 
The time of a machine is so valuable that only fast 
keyboard operators are wanted and employers will 
cheerfully pay more for fast men than for operators of 
moderate speed. The consequence is that operators 
have the same stimulus to show results as when work- 
ing by the piece, and there has not been observed any 
real difference in product. There are probably as many 
employers and as many employees who favor the week 
system as the piece system on the machines. 

Time can be saved in the composing-room by de- 
manding good copy of customers, or by arranging it 
properly before it goes to the compositor. In these 
days of cheap typewriting, the printer is entitled to 
good, clear copy at all times, and when a customer 
offers bad copy, it is best to tell him that it will waste 
a great deal of the compositor's time, which must be 
charged for some way, and that he had best have it 
typewritten, or that you will have it done for him. A 
little judgment exercised here will often save lots of 
waste in the composing-room. It also avoids disputes 
with customers that may arise from a misreading of 
poor manuscript. The compositor cannot be expected 
to get up a good string from illegible copy, and when 
it is obviously delaying, he may not care to try, as 
he has such good excuse for going slowly. 

In some composing-rooms there is much waste 
because of a needless regard for style, as in capitalization, 



THE COMPOSING-ROOM. 1 63 

hyphenating, division of words, disputed spellings, and 
the like. This usually emanates from the proofroom, 
where an office style has been developed, and which 
comes to be insisted upon, without regard to economy 
or common sense. It is essential to maintain a style 
throughout an entire book, but every job done in one 
office need not follow that style. The effort to pre- 
serve office style through miscellaneous job work 
simply results in needless waste. If the style of an 
office is to spell centre, theatre, etc., what matters it if 
in a particular job some compositor spells the words 
center and theater? Both spellings are authorized, 
and the customer is unlikely to care a rap which is 
employed, or if he is suspected of caring, the guide 
to his taste is found in following copy, rather than 
in -following office style, regarding which he prob- 
ably knows nothing. In the matters referred to, any 
commonly accepted style is as good commercially as 
any other, and if the compositor has set a job uni- 
formly on any reasonable system, it is a waste of good 
money for the proof-reader to alter his work simply to 
make it conform to his notions or the accepted office 
style. If a proof-reader manifests a tendency to be 
too strict in such matters, and to insist on particular 
spellings and divisions, he should be checked. It is 
all very well to have educated readers, but the printer 
is not in business to improve the English language at 
his own expense, and when a reader interferes with 
practical results, a little wholesome advice from the 
business office is in order. 

In some book offices a great deal of time is spent 
in tying and untying pages of type in the period 
between composition and going to press. Especially 



164 THE COMPOSING-ROOM. 

is this loss apparent in a class of work that is kept 
standing in pages, and subject to regular correction. 
Often great saving can be effected in such work by 
placing grooved wooden furniture around the pages 
before tying up, so that the page cord is entirely 
sunk in the grooves. This cord may then remain in 
when the form is locked and goes to press, effecting a 
material economy in handling the pages at various 
times without tying up or untying. 

By applying the same common sense that dictates 
the above practice to other regular work, observing 
where special conveniences may reduce the time of 
getting it out and providing extra galleys, sort boxes, 
shelving, or anything of that sort that will expedite 
the work, further savings may be accomplished. In 
every large or regular job in the composing-room 
there are sure to be some ways and means for reducing 
the labor by taking note of especial characteristics of 
the work. It is a part of the duty of every foreman 
to use his brains and ingenuity in such matters, and 
to save time at every turn. 

It is a debatable question with many offices whether 
it. is best to put in composing machines, or to give 
out their straight composition to offices having ma- 
chines, buying it on the galley. This is a point which 
each must settle for himself, according to his circum- 
stances. It is certainly better for a small office to buy 
type on the galley than to incur indebtedness for 
machines which it has not the work to keep busy. 
The office doing a large amount of composition can 
save money by owning its own machines, but where 
to draw this line between the office that cannot afford 
to do without them ' and the office that would be ex- 



THE COMPOSING-ROOM. \6<y 

travagant in purchasing them, is a poser. The decision 
can be arrived at only by the parties interested, having 
all the minute details affecting the situation. It has 
been demonstrated that machines are a saving that 
varies with the class of work in hand, and the amount 
of saving on certain classes of work is to most printers 
an inexact quantity. Printers must be cautious in put- 
ting in machines not to overrate the results they can 
get, but to benr in mind that a composing machine is 
like a press, in that it must be kept running a large 
number of hours daily to produce the most economical 
results. In practice it is difficult to keep cylinder presses 
running half the time, and while we know that the 
composing machine can be kept more busy than the 
press, yet it is not safe to calculate that it can be 
occupied all the time. Copy will give out, operators 
will want a holiday, the power will break down, and 
so on ; besides, there will be delays in changing sizes 
of type and measures, and a good many minor things 
not readily foreseen. 

The printer who uses composing machines must 
beware of giving his profit to the customer. Where 
is the sense in buying costly machinery and then giv- 
ing all the margin to the public ? Machine composi- 
tion ought to be furnished to the customer at the same 
price as hand-set, wherever conditions make it pos- 
sible. Only on newspaper work is it reasonable for 
a customer to expect a lower figure. I am a believer 
in the machines; they mark a great step in advance in 
the printing industry; but I deprecate the disposition of 
printers to use them simply to cut prices and get work 
away from other printers. The proper way is to use 
them for what work you have and to secure to your- 



1 66 THE COMPOSING-ROOM. 

self the profit they allow on that work, rather than to 
try and make a small profit on all the work in sight. 

If a printer insists on doing all the work in his 
neighborhood on machines it is better that he should 
do it direct for his fellow printers, than to go to their 
customers, for in this way he maintains prices, and a 
larger profit is secured to all. 

Some one has said that success consists in attend- 
ing to little things. This is particularly true of the 
composing-room, where a large and economical output 
can be obtained only by unceasing vigilance as to the 
minor details. 

A few extracts from the "Rules and Usages of the 
Typothetse of New York," regarding composition, seem 
appropriate in closing : 

Prices for Composition. 

PER lOOO EMS. 

For weekly newspapers, 70 cents. 

Plain book work — reprint, . . . . 70 " 

" " " manuscript . . . . 75 " 

Pages containing less than 1000 ems should be charged at 
an advanced rate as follows; 

PER 1000 EMS. 

80 cents. 
. 85 " 
. 90 '' 

95 " 
. $1.00 " 

These rates apply only to ordinary composition in works 
containing 50,000 ems or more, in which the cost of making- 
up and composition can be reduced by the re-use of head and 
foot lines, and chase furniture. 

Pamphlets of thirty-two pages or less, and all single-sheet 
jobs should be at the rate of $1.00 per 1000 ems. 

These rates include the work here specified and no more: 

One proof on galley made correct to copy, free from typo- 
graphical errors and bad spelling, and composed in a work- 



900 ems 


and over. 


800 " 


(( n 


700 " 


'' " 


600 " 

500 " 


act 
11 li 



THE COMPOSING-ROOM. 1 67 

manlike manner; one corrected proof made up in pages or 
columns. 

Changes in proof that were not plainly indicated or ordered 
in copy or called for by a previously prepared and agreed 
schedule for style (such as the substitution of spelled-out 
words instead of figures, of capitals instead of lower case, of 
italic or small capitals instead of roman, or any deviation 
whatever from the copy) must be rated as alterations. 

When a negligently-written copy has not been properly 
prepared as to punctuation, capitals, italic, etc., the printer 
should try to amend these faults, but his amendments, even 
though partial or incomplete, are to be regarded as a fair com- 
pliance with his contract. The printer's contract is for the 
mechanical work, and not for editing, even in as small a matter 
as punctuation. The standard rates of composition are for 
work that is to be composed but once, and not for work to be 
edited at the printer's expense. The contract is complete when 
proof is made correct to copy, or is amended in typographical 
style, as far as the ordinary compositor can amend it Copy 
should be properly prepared, or if edited in the proof, it should 
be at the cost of the customer. 

It is understood, however, that all work should be work- 
manlike as to spacing, leading, blanking-out, and uniformity 
of style on headings and sub-divisions. Failure to do work- 
manlike composition shall be at the printer's and not at the 
customer's expense, Book titles, dedications and displayed 
advertisements must be composed in a good style before proof 
is submitted. 

All time work spent in the improvement of the style of com- 
posed matter, after it has been made correct to copy and ap- 
proved of by the office, whether spent m alterations, reading, 
revising, proving or stone or plate work, should be charged as 
alterations. 

Time work at composition should be charged at the rate of 
60 cents per hour. 

When composition is done on time an allowance should be 
made for proof-reading, make-up, distribution, etc., to be added 
to the time for composition at the rate of 60 cents per hour. 

Jobs set in delicate or fragile type should be charged one- 
third more than for ordinary type 

All cuts introduced in composition, including full-page cuts, 
to be charged as text. 

Over-running matter to insert cuts to be charged as altera- 
tions. 



l68 THE COMPOSING-ROOM. 

Standing type should be charged 5 cents per 1000 ems for 
a week, or 10 cents for a month. 

Type kept out of use by delay of proof beyond reasonable 
time should be charged as standing matter. 

Extra price matter should be charged double the extra paid 
to the compositor, in additioii to the price for plain matter. 

Special or unusual sorts that have to be bought for the work 
should be charged at cost. Composition of displayed advertise- 
ments should be measured and charged as brevier (no allowance 
being made for electrotype advertisements that may be fur- 
nished), unless the difficulty of the work or the quantity of 
smaller type used calls for a higher rate. 

In furnishing an estimate, or rendering a bill, no customer is 
entitled to prices in detail on the several items of com.position, 
press work, binding, electrotyping, etc., nor should any be given 
except under exceptional circumstances which in themselves 
would excuse a breach of business custom. 



CHAPTER XVlli. 

THE PRESSROOM. 

The largest investment of money in the printing office 
is usually in the pressroom, and this department can be 
made to pay only by wise management of machinery 
appropriate to the work in hand. The cylinder press 
is the great producer; the web press and the perfecter 
have their special fields, as have the platen presses, but 
most printers depend upon the output of the cylinders 
for results in the pressroom. The economical handling 
of these cylinders is therefore of the highest impor- 
tance. At first sight, management of a pressroom simply 
means putting on the presses what work there is, and 
running it off in a workmanlike manner — and that is 
about all the concern that is exercised in many press- 
rooms; but to make money out of printing presses re- 
quires the use of brains and judgment just as in any 
other producing or manufacturing business. 

in the first place it pays to have good machines, 
and when those in use are antiquated it is commonly 
best to throw them out and put in better producers. 
it is also well to maintain them in good order, by 
regular inspection, rather than to wait for break-downs, 
which are most apt to occur in seasons of rush, when 
they cause the greatest loss. During the dull summer 
months every large pressroom should employ a ma- 



I 70 THE PRESSROOM. 

chinist to look over the presses and advise as to any 
parts that are giving out, and which require renewal 
or readjustment. In this way there is little danger of 
trouble with the presses during heavy runs in busy 
season. 

In choosing presses, it is a waste to employ a high 
class $3,000 two-revolution cylinder for newspaper 
work, when some old-style two-roller press will turn 
it out as rapidly. It is even worse to try and do half- 
tone work on a two-roller press, which never can give 
good results. Yet if an office has a modern four- 
roller two-revolution that is not busy all the time it 
would be better to put a newspaper job on it than to 
buy a two-roller press for that purpose, since it is 
economy to make the best use of what is already in 
an office. 

Without good rollers and appropriate inks there 
will be much waste time in the pressroom, and care- 
lessness in providing these should never be permitted. 
Do not economize on rollers, but get the best, and 
take care of them. Maintain a good heat in the press- 
room at all times; as even a slight neglect in this par- 
ticular results in large waste. If the pressroom in 
winter is not up to a proper heat until half an hour 
after the starting time, about a quarter of an hour's 
time of all hands is wasted. This is a point that is 
frequently disregarded in small and medium-sized of- 
fices. Every proprietor should see to it personally that 
a proper temperature is maintained in his pressroom if 
he expects to receive value for the wages he pays out. 

A clear head is required in a large pressroom to 
give out the work to the best advantage, and good 
business qualifications on the part of a foreman are 



THE PRESSROOM. I7I 

often more valuable here than unusual skill in press- 
work. A prompt, accurate judgment is in demand all 
the time in overseeing the operation of a large number 
of printing presses. The responsibility is great, because 
so much costly paper is handled, and a very simpje 
blunder often may result in a large amount of spoilage. 
To keep the run of the work readily the foreman 
should keep before him a sheet on which appear all 
the jobs on hand, and those coming, in order to make 
provision for them. Such a sheet may be made up 
this way: 

Schedule of Presswork — Friday, May 2. 

Cylinder press A. Jones' Catalogue, io-m, off by three o'clock- 

" " B. Waiting for electros. 

" " C. The Mirror, 7>^-m, must be off to-night. 

" " D. Brown's book, off sometime Saturday. 

" pony E. Blotters, 20-M, off Thursday noon. 

Gordons, half A. Clipper Club Menu, off about noon. 
" quarto B. Smith's envelopes, ^-m, off four o'clock. 

" C. Idle. 
' ' eighth D. Patent medicine dodgers, i 2-m, off six o'clock. 

*' E. Idle. 

Forms waiting, — C, B. & CLtime table, 20x30, 3-M. 
Picnic posters, 28 x 42, 200. 
Thomson's blanks, 12 x 36, 2^-m. 

Forms coming. — jeweler's Gems, 3-M, four o'clock. 

Carter's circulars, 50-M, Wednesday a. m. 
Parker's billheads, 2-m 4s, Wednesday a. m. 
Green's letter-heads, 8-m, Wednesday p. m. 

By keeping everything before him on one sheet in 
this manner the foreman of the pressroom is able to 
plan ahead with certainty as to what forms are best 
placed on certain presses, and may be tolerably certain 
as to when each job can go to press. The system 
prevents slips of the memory, and enables the foreman 
to feel quite sure of what he is doing. As fiist as 



172 THE PRESSROOM. 

forms go into the chase-rack he enters them as forms 
waiting, and as soon as they go on press they are 
transferred to that head. By conference with the fore- 
man of the composing-room once or twice a day 
he keeps up his Hst of forms coming, and prevents 
the springing of any surprises that tend to upset his 
plans. It is a very bad practice to go only by the 
chase-rack, and to decide when a pressman comes 
along what form he had better take; that is almost as 
bad as letting the pressmen help themselves out of the 
chase-rack, and take the job that most suits their fancy. 
By deciding all these things in advance on a system, 
the pressman may be often informed towards the close 
of a run as to what is coming next, and can make 
any preparations that are likely to expedite the work. 

When a pressroom is crowded with work it is a 
good plan to pay the feeders extra to wash up and put 
on rollers before and after hours, so that the presses 
may be kept running full time, thus virtually gaining a 
half hour's production at slight cost. It is also well to 
stimulate pressmen and feeders alike to hustle, by close 
watch of their progress, offering premiums for quick 
runs, and a general enforcement of those principles laid 
down in the chapter on ''Management of Employees." 

A record should be kept of all work, and when the 
make-ready of a form is passed, at least two copies of 
the sheet should be filed, with the date, time, run and 
name of pressman and feeder written thereon, besides 
the foreman's and proofreader's O. K.'s. These filed 
sheets serve to settle subsequent disputes in case of 
spoilage, etc., and are convenient for reference in many 
ways. 

It is the part of prudence to avoid purchasing new 



THE PRESSROOM. 1 73 

machinery to accommodate a rush of work that may 
be temporary. Many a printer has added 50 or 100 per 
cent, to the capacity of his pressroom only to find that 
within a year he is. chasing about cutting prices to get 
work enough to keep the machines going. It is better 
to have few presses and busy ones, than many presses 
often idle. In few pressrooms is it possible to keep 
the cyHnders and Gordons actually running for more 
than one-third of the working hours of the year. An- 
other third of the time is taken up in make-ready, and 
during the remaining third they stand idle, If a drive 
of work comes into a pressroom the production can be 
increased to meet the emergency by adding to the help 
on make-ready, thus obtaining more hours during which 
the presses can be kept running; and if there is a still 
further demand on the pressroom the machines can be 
run at night, without much extra cost, as the increased 
pay of the men is nearly offset by the saving in fixed 
expenses that need not be charged against night work. 
A further increase of orders may be met by giving 
presswork to some competitor who is not so busy. 
Only when it is evident that the increase of work is 
permanent should the proprietor increase the number 
of his printing machines. 

There has been a tendency for many years to in- 
crease the size of presses, as it is evident that the 
economy of printing machines increases with the size 
of the sheets they will print. Though the largest 
machines are very costly and heavy, yet they produce 
work more cheaply when there is enough for them to 
do, and therefore they are in demand wherever there 
are long runs that may be made up for large sheets. 
Of course where there are constant long runs of small- 



174 THE PRESSROOM. 

sized sheets, that cannot readily be doubled, it is best 
to use cylinders of moderate size, and if there is an 
occasional loss through inability to double up a form, 
it is compensated for by the continual saving in run- 
ning a lighter and smaller press. The pony cylinder 
is a money-earner where there are plenty of short runs 
adapted to its size of sheet, but it is a considerable 
loss to use ponies on book work or the like, which 
might be run in large forms. The half-medium platen 
jobber is not so much favored as it was twenty years 
ago, but for short runs of work adapted to its size, I 
have always found it preferable to the pony cylinder, 
as the first cost of the machine is much less, and the 
help required less expensive. 

The printer who tries to make money by running 
his presses faster than the builder designed them to run 
makes a mistake. As has been shown, the production 
of a pressroom can be increased in several other ways 
that are not damaging, and the over-speeding of a 
press is bound to break it up v/ithin a few years. 
There is an exception to this general rule where the 
work demanded is of an exceptionally hurried character, 
and will pay the printer for breaking down his ma- 
chines and buying new. There are offices in Wall 
Street, New York, where this is done knowingly and 
profitably. Certain financial matters must be printed 
and sent out at the utmost speed, and cost is an in- 
ferior consideration. Cylinders are belted up to 3,000 
an hour, and feeders specially trained to crowd in the 
sheets. The life of a cylinder that is regularly abused 
in this way is about two years; then it is thrown out, 
and a printer's machinist replaces some of the parts and 
sends it out as a rebuilt machine to some country 



THE PRESSROOM. I'jy 

printer who wants a press cheap, and does not care if 
it is loose in the joints and shy on register. The Wall 
Street printer makes a profit by charging an extra price 
for the hurried work ; but any printer who thinks he 
can save time enough to make money on ordinary 
work by over-speeding his presses, is doomed to ex- 
pensive disappointment. 

The master printer who would make money out of 
his pressroom requires to watch carefully the character 
of paper furnished by customers, and to give himself 
leeway in making contracts to charge time in cases 
where the paper makes trouble and delay. If the paper 
is extra thin it is hard to feed, and the press must be 
run slowly; if it is overcharged with electricity it may 
take just double time to run off; if it is rough-edged, 
it will require pointing to get register; if it is unduly 
or unevenly coated there will be bother and delay; if 
it is not cut squarely, there will be a lot of trouble 
in adjusting margins, turning and cutting; and so it 
may be with half a dozen other things, for all of which 
the customer should pay when he, elects to furnish his 
own paper stock. 

A careful record should be kept of all detention of 
presses, that they may be charged to the customer, 
when they are a consequence of his delays. The time 
of a cylinder is worth as much and more than that of 
the man who oversees it, as is fully explained in the 
chapter on "The Cost of Producing Printing," and if a 
press is held for overdue proof corrections by the cus- 
tomer, or for electros which he is to furnish, or in any 
other manner for which he is responsible, a distinct 
charge is proper; but only by making such things clear 
in advance, and by keeping an accurate record of such 



176 THE PRESSROOM. 

delays, can the printer hope to collect for them without 
undue friction with the customer. 

It is proper for the office to retain possession of all 
overlays cut for any job, in the absence of any contract 
to the contrary with the customer. Because the cus- 
tomer has paid for the time of producing overlays, they 
do not become his property, as he buys only the re- 
sultant job. He might as well demand of the printer 
the delivery of electros, which the printer had ordered 
for his own convenience in the production of the work. 
The storing of overlays and electros affords only a fair 
chance for extra profit to the printer on future orders. 
Where customers want to buy the overlays or elec- 
tros produced on their work, a moderate charge is 
proper. 

A great deal of the cost of a pressroom is involved 
in the time spent in making ready. The time required 
on a form is always more or less of an unknown 
quantity, yet workmen can be trained to great speed 
in overlaying by a judicious system. If you are con- 
scious that there fs too much time spent in making^ 
ready in your pressroom, look into some other press- 
room, where you know they have to hustle, and ob- 
serve the methods by which speed is induced and 
maintained. Both for common and extra fine work 
there is a vast difference between men who are trained 
to rush the overlaying, and those who go at it in a 
leisurely manner, with the conception that the work is 
so artistic as to require deep study and observation at 
each stage. The individual hustle of each pressman 
is the item where management may be expected to 
show most results. 

The duplication of forms calls for considerable judg- 



THE PRESSROOM. 1 77 

ment on the part of the printer. If it is desired to 
print 100,000 9x12 circulars, in determining how many 
plates he will make, and how many can be run at once, 
he has to consider which of his presses are idle. It 
may be that he can figure abstractly that the work can 
be done cheapest with sixteen plates on a large cylin- 
der, but if his large cylinders are busy and a pony idle, 
the chances are that it is cheapest for him to make 
fewer plates and run it on the pony. It is not good 
economy to have hard and fast rules in all these things. 

When there is a rush of work in the pressroom 
there is sometimes opportunity to effect a saving by 
placing two small jobs of the same length of run on. 
one cylinder press, one on each end of the bed. The 
more clever the foreman, the oftener will he find such 
opportunities for saving labor. 

Where an office handles a great many electrotype 
plates, requiring much time for adjustment on the 
blocks for the press, so that one or more presses are 
run practically all the time with blocked electros, it is 
good economy to have special metal blocks made for 
the presses, adapted to hold any size of plate. These are 
high in first cost, but they save a great deal of time, 
and insure accurate register. As the blocks fit the bed 
of the press, it is possible to take off a large form and 
put it on again without losing register. They also do 
away with the great annoyance that comes from mak- 
ing up a form of blocks in which are a few odd sizes 
of plates, as of illustrations that run small, or advertis- 
ing pages that run large. 

In undertaking presswork it is very essential that 
the manager of an office should know all the ins and 
outs of the work, as there are so many items that add 



178 THE PRESSROOM. 

to cost of production. For instance, forms of part type 
and part plates on wood bases always involve a loss 
of time in make-ready; almost any blocks on wood 
bases are apt to add to the labor. Forms of a given 
size having J2 or 48 pages involve more labor in 
making register than where there are only eight or six- 
teen pages on which to secure correct backing. A rule 
border likewise increases the labor of making register, 
and also involves a loss of time in avoiding slur. 
Forms of poetry, though fat for the compositor, and 
requiring to be registered only on the folios, are yet 
lean for the pressman because the numerous ragged 
lines take more impression than those in the body of 
the verse, involving much cutting out and patching up. 
Forms of very small type require increased care, be- 
cause of the necessity for extreme clearness of print, 
and must be inked quite as well as a form of half- 
tones, involving as many stoppages. 

It pays to have things neat and clean in the press- 
room, as dirty presses and floors invite slouchy work. 
The instant a new pressman comes into a pressroom 
Avhere the machines are clean and bright, the floor 
clear of soiled paper and waste, and the ink neatly 
kept, that instant he recognizes that he is expected to 
turn out neat work in such surroundings; but when a 
new man comes to work in a dirty, dark pressroom, 
it does not require much intelligence on his part to 
recognize that almost any slighted work will pass 
muster. Every printer should know enough to keep a 
record of the sheets spoiled, though there are offices in 
which this is not done. When omitted, the shortage 
usually comes out of the customer, who may not 
notice it. If it is noticed, however, the customer is 



THE PRESSROOM. I 79 

apt to consider the printer as dishonest, and to leave 
him for one in whom he has confidence. 

The stea'm-engine has been the most favored motor 
for the pressroom, but of late years the practice has 
increased of attaching individual electric motors to each 
press. Under this system the printer pays only for the 
power he uses, as there is no charge for electric cur- 
rent when the press stands still, it does away with 
shafting, pulleys and belting, affording increased light. 
If a few more presses are added to the plant it is not 
necessary to throw out the steam-engine and buy a 
larger one. By availing himself of such improved 
mechanical means as this, wherever offered, the wise 
printer may expect to be able to produce work for his 
pressroom as economically as any one in his locality. 

The platen job presses in an office should be large 
earners, if the business office knows how to charge for 
the work, as they are kept busy mostly with small 
orders, averaging say $15 or $20 each, and such can be 
made to pay a profitable price more easily than jobs 
involving a thousand dollars or so. Machines of the 
Gordon type are light and simple, do not get out of 
order readily, and may be run by boys with safety. 
Some of the later types of presses have numerous con- 
veniences and time-savers that are worthy of considera- 
tion. It is also possible to have made special mechanical 
appliances for jobbers to adapt them to special work, 
and the printer who has long runs of anything out of 
the ordinary will do well to look into such matters. 

In operating job presses it should be remembered 
that there are several little tricks by which two, three 
or even four colors may be printed at the labor of 
a single impression. The most practical of these is 



l8o THE PRESSROOM. 

accomplished by dividing the form, and locking the parts 
side by side in the chase, cutting the paper double 
size. The sheets are then run on one color, as red — 
after which the press is washed up for the other color, 
as blue — and the two parts of the form are reversed. 
The result is that one-half of the form has the red and 
blue reversed in arrangement from what it is in the 
other half, but the total number of impressions is the 
same as the total of the job, and every sheet is in two 
colors. This system saves only on small runs, for on 
a large run it would be just as cheap to have electros 
made and run several at once, perhaps on a cylinder. 
Let the printer ever remember that it is not what 
a press can do, but what it does do, that determines 
final profit or loss in the pressroom. 



CHAPTER XIX. 

THE BUSINESS OFFICE. 

In the average printery the business office receives 
less attention than any other department, yet it is, in a 
sense, the most important of all, for its mission is to 
hold together the mechanical departments and cause 
them to develop a profit. When a good business man 
and a good printer go into opposition it is always safe 
to wager on the superior success of the business man„ 
The good printer should note this, and make himself 
over into a business man, bearing in mind that there 
is no object in doing business except to make a profit. 
The business office exists to see that a profit is made, 
and to make that profit as large as possible. 

One of the prime requisites of a business office is 
neatness. A good office is as much entitled to display 
good counters and desks as is a bank or a charitable 
society; a good carpet or a properly oiled floor are as 
desirable here as in a physician's office or clergyman's 
study; for these things command the respect of the 
stranger, who judges of a man at first sight by his 
clothes, or of a business by its substantial evidences of 
prosperity. Just as the well-dressed man commands 
the most confidence at first sight, so the well-appointed 
business office suggests to the prospective customer 
who calls that he is in a place where good printing 
and fair treatment may be expected. 



1 82 THE BUSINESS OFFICE. 

The printer who does his business in a dingy room, 
or on an old desk in the corner of the office, is like the 
antiquated countryman who wears a hat of a fashion 
twenty years old — lacking in proper self-respect. Only 
those who personally know his virtues and substantial 
qualities will believe that he has anything special to 
commend him. With good chairs, desks, counters, 
shelving, and sample cases, and neatly tinted walls and 
ceilings, with attractive window shades, etc., the busi- 
ness office is well arranged for trade. 

If a firm of printers make a specialty of doing 
ornate work, and desires to impress customers that its 
grade of printing is much superior to the average, it is 
well to fit up the business office more like a studio, 
with framed specimens of color work on the walls, 
portieres at the entrances, etc. Two customers out of 
three will have more confidence that they can secure 
an extra fine grade of work in such a place than where 
the office appointments are of a simple character. 

Even in the office of a very small printery it pays 
to have a book-keeper and typewriter. An intelligent 
young person in this capacity can save fully half of a 
proprietor's time, and give him the chance to do a 
hundred things that otherwise might be neglected. 
The proprietor or manager should keep his own desk 
neat and presentable. I once knew a proprietor whose 
habits were so peculiar that he never could get through 
with the letters or papers he handled so as to permit 
them to be filed, but left them sprawled about his desk 
until it was so loaded that there was no room to work; 
then he let the cover down, and did his work on the 
outside and on the slides, and when these were also 
loaded, he moved a clerk and appropriated his desk, so 



THE BUSINESS OFFICE. 1 8^ 

great was his aversion to clearing up his own. This 
is cited as an example of what slovenliness may lead 
to, and as an instance of "how not to do." 

The next essential in the business office is the hav- 
ing on hand at all times of a man competent to talk 
to customers, take orders, and make prices. This work 
is by long odds the most important in the business, for 
on the price obtained and satisfaction of the customer 
depends the prosperity of the whole establishment. A 
practical printer is usually required for this position, 
because of the necessity for knowledge of all the details 
of production, but it is even more essential that the 
ordertaker should be a good figurer and capable sales- 
man — a man who knows the cost of work, and who 
can satisfy the customer that he is getting value for his 
money. The duties of such a man are fully outlined in 
the chapters on ''Taking Orders" and **How to Talk 
to Customers." To obtain a profit it is necessary to 
charge and collect more than all the direct and indirect 
costs; and to get customers to pay the price asked re- 
quires good management and a knowledge of human 
nature. 

The business office is to the balance of a printery 
what a man's head is to his body. It is here that the 
brains must be applied to make the whole establish- 
ment a success. It is a mistake for a proprietor to do 
his own work in the composing-room and pressroom. 
He should hire workers and devote his time to running 
the business; conducting the business office so as to 
extract a profit from everything that comes in his way, 
or that he can bring into his way. It is not the 
amount of work done in an establishment during a 
year that determines prosperity, but the amount of 



1 84 THE BUSINESS OFFICE. 

profit extracted from the work. Better is $5,000 worth 
of work at $1,000 profit, than $10,000 worth of work 
at $1,000 profit, for the former involves less bother and 
better chance of getting more work at the higher profit 
in the future. 

The business office should keep itself informed of 
the exact production, exact cost, and exact profit or 
loss on every piece of work done in the printery every 
day in the year. By keeping separate accounts for each 
department, it is possible to know if any one depart- 
ment is being carried at a loss, or without profit, and 
if so to raise prices in that department. It does not 
make any difference what other printers are doing or 
charging; it is the business of the business office to see 
that the prices on work in every department are profit- 
able, for if they are not made to pay, it is better to 
close them up than to bother with their unprofitable 
maintenance. 

It is an important problem to decide whom to trust, 
and how much trust to give, yet it is a question that 
cannot be shirked by the business office, for it is uni- 
versally agreed that it is impractical to do printing on 
a cash with the order basis. The goods manufactured 
by the printer are commonly of no use whatever except 
to the customer; if he fails to pay for them and leaves 
them on the printer's hands they are nothing but old 
junk. Hence the printer must be more careful in mak- 
ing credits than the builder, who retains a lien on the 
house; or the tailor, who can refit the clothes to an- 
other customer. The stranger always should be asked 
for a deposit on small work. If he brings in large 
work, he should have a satisfactory commercial rating 
or excellent references, and also pay a considerable 



THE BUSINESS OFFICE. 1^5 

portion of cash down with the order. If his work in- 
volves the purchase of a large amount of paper (as a 
publication), it is a good plan to ask the customer to 
buy his own paper, and to put in your contract with 
him that you may hold any paper delivered to you for 
the customer as collateral security for unpaid balances. 
It is also advisable to place in contracts some stipula- 
tion as to the extent of the credit, such as that when 
the credit exceeds the sum of $i,ooo all work shall 
cease where it is until a payment is made. 

The printer cannot be too careful in looking into 
the individual character of a new customer requesting 
some credit. It is not only dishonesty that he has to 
look out for, but undue exactions. The difficulty of 
printing a job wholly to a customer's satisfaction, and 
the fact that when done it is worth nothing to the 
printer, affords the unfair customer a tremendous ad- 
vantage in accepting work and closing a transaction. 
Suppose it is a job involving $3,000, and the customer 
has made payments to the amount of $2,000. On the 
completion of the job he finds fault with certain trifling 
typographical errors or minor inelegancies, which can 
usually be found in a large job, and insists that because 
of these the job is not worth over $2,500 or $2,600. 
The printer may feel that he is a little lame on some 
of the claims, and that it will be cheaper to compro- 
mise for $2,800 than to sue for the balance due. The 
job is therefore let go with all the profit shaved off. 
Such a customer is not to be trusted. The printer has 
to be on his guard against him all the time. 

Beware of the customer who comes from you know 
not where, and establishes an acquaintance with you on 
the strength of a few small cash jobs, and then leaves 



1 86 THE BUSINESS OFFICE. 

a large order with the nominal understanding that it is 
to be paid for on delivery. Never accept such an 
order without some cash or security, and do not deliver 
any of the goods until you get all the money. The 
customer may be an honest man, but such methods are 
commonly adopted by dead-beat advertising schemers 
and the like. The only safe way is to give no trust to 
chance acquaintances, but only to those having a com- 
mercial rating or satisfactory references. Even then you 
must expect to lose two per cent, in bad bills. 

There is nothing like properly written contracts to 
protect printers from loss as a result of misunderstand- 
ings. Every possible point of dispute should be placed 
in writing. This may be done by an exchange of let- 
ters, or a written order, or in the case of very large 
jobs by a regular contract drawn by a lawyer. In all 
such contracts the printer should limit the amount of 
credit; specify for time charges for all changes and de- 
lays; demand that no deductions be made for trifling 
errors ; and guarantee only reasonable accuracy. If 
there is a penalty in the contract against the printer for 
delays, he must see that it is not applicable in case of 
fire, strike, riot, etc. The wise printer will always 
exact a higher price for work on which he is liable to 
a penalty if not delivered on time, because he then 
takes risks for which there must be compensation in 
the price. 

From the point of view of the business office the 
printery is a combination of machines, which must be 
made to produce at a less cost than the price that can 
be obtained in selling. The management must know 
the cost of all details, and make prices that will yield 
a margin for profit, else it is inefficient. Good prices 



THE BUSINESS OFFICE. 1 87 

are to be had only by asking for them and giving such 
good satis^ctory service that customers are willing to 
pay what is asked. It takes time, patience, talent, 
push, and experience, to build up a valuable business, 
and such cannot be accomplished through any "Cheap 
John " methods. There is no royal road to fortune in 
printing any more than in any other line of business. 
One must be a plodder, systematize things and look 
out for the profit on everything. This is the chief ob- 
ject of the business office. It would be possible to 
run a printery without a business office if profit were 
not desired. Since the profit is the essential thing, it 
follows that the business office is the most important 
part of a printing establishment. If you run your busi- 
ness office rightly you can make money; if you let it 
run itself you will run out of business after a while. 
The proprietor of a printing office should not work 
so hard that he gets tired and keeps tired all the time, 
for then he does not have the proper use of his brains. 
He should keep himself fresh, and study new methods 
of decreasing cost and increasing output, and the secur- 
ing of paying prices. If he does not take time to think 
of newer and better ways of running his business, 
others who do think will get ahead of him. He re- 
quires to watch his trade as a speculator watches the 
stock-ticker, and like a mariner trim his sails whenever 
he sees an approaching change in the wind. He should 
know what other successful printers are doing, and how 
they get good prices for their work. To this end he 
should cultivate a friendly feeling with his competitors, 
and when in other cities call on leading printers and 
invite an exchange of ideas. Many a man who is es- 
teemed as rather dull by his fellows succeeds in busi- 



I»» THE BUSINESS OFFICE. 

ness simply by the thoroughness with which he studies 
the methods of others, and applies their successful ideas 
to his own affairs. 

The writer deplores the making of price lists as 
generally objectionable. While recognizing that they 
are more or less necessary to existing conditions of 
trade, and may be often the means of upholding prices, 
yet they are also often the means of keeping down 
charges, by the leveling of all work. What I mean by 
this is, that if m a price list, billheads for instance, are 
quoted at so much per i,ooo for a given size, there is 
no leeway for any peculiar conditions in the job. A job 
properly placed in a price list at $5 may be worth $10 
if wanted delivered in five hours, or if wanted for a 
customer noted for his fussiness and delays and changes. 
There are a score of circumstances that may render it 
wise or obligatory that the first price should be much 
higher than under ordinary conditions. A price list sup- 
poses that cost is always the same, whereas in reality 
it IS always different, and as the printer can judge 
much better of the cost at the time he is about to do 
the job, with the copy in hand, than can any price 
list, he should be privileged to vary or raise the price 
according to such conditions. He is not bound to 
lower a standard price because he happens to be able 
to turn out the work more cheaply than usual — that is 
the accident of fortune of which he must avail himself 
in order to increase his profits. He is under obligation 
to himself to raise the charge with every increase in 
cost, however temporary or irregular, his sufficient ex- 
cuse being that he cannot make a profit on the work 
otherwise, and why should he work without profit ? 

It is a homely proverb that soft soap goes further 



THE BUSINESS OFFICE. 1 89 

than hard, meaning for us that a Httle pleasant talk is 
frequently useful in business transactions. It is not 
necessary to display truckling or obsequious qualities, 
yet it is folly not to show a distinct desire to please 
customers, and to make them comfortable generally. 
A man who buys printing likes rather to have his 
reading matter approved than regarded with doubt. If 
the printer cannot approve of his customer's copy, or 
assist its improvement, he had better say nothing as to 
its character; but if he can throw in a few words of 
appreciation as to the get up of the thing — of the 
idea involved — he will certainly stand a better chance 
of keeping the customer. 

The young printer who knows he has all to learn 
in business should not be shy of going to his older 
competitors for pointers, When they know that these 
pointers are desired to keep up prices, usually they 
will give them freely. Let the master printer run the 
business end of his printery with all the knowledge 
and skill he can gather, and all the new methods that 
commend themselves as better than the old, and he 
will prosper. 

First get the business; then get the price; then give 
good work promptly; then conduct the plant econom- 
ically, and you will be managing your business office 
on the right lines. 



CHAPTER XX. 

BOOKKEEPING. 

The average small printer in business keeps books in 
a very irregular, disorderly way. He can seldom tell 
anything about a job printed a year ago, though he may 
find some traces of it on an old strand of wire used as 
a file. He can never be quite sure whether he has paid 
the paper man for envelopes bought six months before, 
and the chances are that even his cash account is un- 
certain, as he has the habit of paying for small things 
out of his pocket, and entering them up later at some 
convenient time. He either undertakes to remember 
the details of orders that he takes, or scribbles them 
partially on the back of the copy. A cash account and 
a ledger are about all the books he cares to bother with, 
and the entries in these are frequently in lead pencil. 
This sort of bookkeeping may be partly excusable for a 
printer who starts a plant with a force of one boy, but 
if the office develops, the system of bookkeeping should 
develop also, else the proprietor will lose track of what 
he is doing, and run along with very little idea as to 
what he is making, or whether he is simply earning 
wages. As to knowing what is the profit on particular 
jobs it is out of the question without proper bookkeep- 
ing, as all becomes guesswork. 



BOOKKEEPING. I9I 

As soon as an office acquires enough business so that 
the bookkeeping occupies a considerable part of the 
proprietor's time, he should engage a bookkeeper (who 
may also be a collector, typewritist and office assistant), 
and have the books kept in a systematic way, so that 
he may know at all times just what he is doing, and 
how his business stands. The method of bookkeeping 
must vary largely with the size of the plant and the 
character of the work, but the books should be so kept 
as to show the cost of all work at regular intervals, the 
receipts, outstanding accounts and profits. The printer 
who fails to keep closely in touch with his cost of 
production is liable to under-charge and lose money, 
and be unaware of it for perhaps a year or two. If his 
accounts show him at monthly intervals just where he 
stands, he will not be likely to commit a mistake in 
the way of quoting prices at or below cost. 

Following will be found a description of the system 
of bookkeeping which is used at the Lotus Press, and 
which has proven satisfactory: 

Envelope System for Insuring Correct Handling of 
Jobs. — The outside of this envelope is a job ticket, as 
will be noted from the reproduction here shown. Being 
in envelope form it serves to carry the copy, etc., better 
than if pinned to the ticket. The size used is 6^ x ()%, 
and the quality a stout manila. When an order is taken, 
one of these numbered envelopes is made out, the num- 
ber on the envelope being also the number of the job. 
The envelope holds the copy, and all the instructions for 
the composing-room and pressrooms are placed outside. 
It is the duty of the compositor, pressman, feeder, cutter, 
binder, etc., to mark on this envelope the time he spends 
on the job. This time must correspond with the time 



192 



BOOKKEEPING. 



charged on the workman's time ticket for this number 
of job. As the workman is paid by the time ticket, 



Jlltl4ih 199..?.: 



No. 



24801 



Name 


John 


Smith 




Kind 


of Work.. 




2,000 


Catalogues 










Size... 


5K^5 


'A- 


-16PP 


. and Cover 



Pads. 



Ink. 



Black 



?\-ooiJ}!litI9!'l.... Job wanted MlJA^.b.ALi^.Ai..^.: 





Compositor. 


HOURS 


MINUTES 














Alterations 



















Pressman 


HOURS 


MINUTES 


Feeder „ 






Pressman 






Feeder 












Stock 24 X )8-yo lb. Super, white 


Cover, 22 X 28-48 lb. H. L. Rose 




All Copy, Proof, Revise and Sample of Work to be returned to office in this envelope. 



Delivered hllJjl^. 1 99I 



No. SHEETS No. SPOILED 

Sent to Press 



Deliver to.. 



Remarks.. 



BOOKKEEPING. 



193 



this practically insures the giving of correct time, a 
very necessary thing, as the cost is figured from this 
time. 

As the envelope is meant for general circulation 
through the printery, it is proper that it should not 
bear the price of the job, or other details which concern 
only the business office. A ticket is therefore made 
out, with the same number as the envelope, and on 
this is placed the name, address, price given, and 
all private information. This ticket never leaves the 
office: 



Rec'd . 
By .... 

Name... 
Addres 


\ No -^i<^-^/ 

E. IV. i 

Delivered- J.^'JlJ.'l^h..-. ipP--?-- 

Johu Smith 


2c)2 — 6th y^ venue 




Ledger P^^L^L ; ) ClKiige 

Sales Book P^gejO ^ ^ ,02.^0 


2,000 Ci.iLilo((iii's 








This Ticket must not go outside of office. 



On the back of this 'ticket appear all expenses in- 
curred in the production of the work, as follows: 



J 94 BOOKKEEPING. 



Composition (See envelope) 

Presswork (See envelope) 

Paper 



Plates 

Engraving 

Perforating 

Eyeletting 

Numbering 

Cutting _ 

Binding 

Packing and delivering.. 



By totaling the above and adding the general 
expense, etc., the cost of each job is accurately as- 
certained, and the price charged is based on this 
known cost in cases where estimates have not been 
given. 

In connection with the envelope system there is 
maintained a ''Proof-Out Drawer," in which the envelope, 
and such contents as do not have to go out with a 
proof, are placed, and remain there until the proof is 
returned. This drawer affords an instant key to all work 
that is waiting on proofs, and avoids the danger of a 
job being put in type for a customer, and never being 
billed or paid for, should he change his mind and retain 
the proof, never sending an order to print. 



BOOKKEEPING. 



195 



An order book is kept in which all orders are made 
out and carried by the number on the envelope. In 
this book the columns are arranged as follows: 



Order Rec'd 


No. of Envelope 


NAME 


JOB 


Delivered 


June 24 


24801 


John Smith 


2,000 Catalogues 


July IS, '99 




24802 










24803 



















The Order Book and Ledger. — The names of the 
customers are used in indexing this order book, so that 
when there is a query by a customer about a certain 
job — new or old — it can be located in its envelope by 
the number, without delay. 

No more bookkeeping is done until the job is finished, 
and then it is closed on the order book by entering the 
date of delivery. As a check, to insure correctness, it 
is required that the date of delivery be entered in the 
order book and on the office ticket at the same time, 
that is without permitting anything to intrude between 
the two entries. When the job is finished the envelope 
is returned to the office, where the ticket is attached to 
it, and the billing and charging follows. The charging 
is done directly into the. ledger, which is ruled to order 
thus: 



(page) 51 



John Smith 









Dn. 




Cr. 


Julv , ,- 


2,000 Catalogues 


24801 


^'102 


10 




1 








1 



196 



BOOKKEEPING. 



The ledger page is then marked on the ticket and 
the charge is entered in the sales book, thus: 



Date 


Order No. 


NAMt 


Ledger 
Page 


PRICE 


July 1^ 


24.^0 r 


John Smith 


^ 1 


$ro2 


^0 















The total sales are credited to the Sales Account in 
the ledger at the end of the month. This manner of 
entering directly into the ledger and sales book saves 
an endless amount of journalizing, and also avoids errors. 
When the ledger page, the sales book page and the 
date of delivery in the order book have been marked 
on the ticket it is ready for filing. The ticket is placed 
inside the envelope, and the envelopes are then kept in 
boxes made for that purpose, of a size to hold fifty 
envelopes. These boxes are labeled in good legible print 
"24800 to 24850" (for instance) and are kept on access- 
ible shelves. 

Each item charged in the ledger, it will be noticed, 
is marked with the envelope or order number, and the 
kind and quantity of the work is also stated, so that 
when a duplicate order is received or an old sample 
wanted it can be found in a minute by referring to the 
ledger for the number, and then getting the corresponding 
envelope out of the box. This handy way of referring 
to previous work is very satisfactory to the customer as 
well as to the printer. 

The Invoice Book and Credit Ledger Combined. — 
Small printers are very apt to omit bookkeeping with 
the people of whom they buy. They think that they 
are sure to be billed for all they owe, and that they 



BOOKKEEPING. 



1 97 



can remember whether the charges are correct. In this 
way they lay themselves open, not so much to the 
dishonesty of the firms they patronize, for there are few 
houses that would deHberately take advantage of such 
a state of affairs, but rather to the carelessness of clerks 
in the employ of the saleshouses. The Lotus Press has 
found it convenient to enter all invoices directly into an 
''Invoice or Credit Ledger. " and no invoices are entered 
here unless they are checked to show that the goods 
have been received; each item is also marked with the 
name of the job for which it was used. This method 
of marking each item with the name of the job helps 
to avoid double entries of the same items. 

It is a common error for clerks, where stock has 
been changed to fail to give credit, and to bill the 
printer for both lots when he retained and used but 
one lot. At the Lotus Press, when anything is returned 
(whether a credit bill is received or not), it is crossed 
off the memorandum account on the invoice or credit 
ledger, or the amount is deducted at the end of the 



SfjO (PAGE) 



John Jones 



(page) 657 



Memorandum Acct. 



May 50 
June 10 



$2f 



94 



$2. 



IJournal 



Mav f 



; }-2o Rm. 28x42 
60 Sup. Whit, 
at 4c 



2 Rm. 28x42- 
i;oo Laid, 
?K'- 



/ Rm. 24x38-80- 
'^oo Naf'l at 4r 

I 10-20 Rm. 2j;i 
40-110 Grcrn 
Enamel, at -jc. 



$2 


76 


' 


6? 


/ 2 


80 


/ / 


11 


?2 


74 




1 



Name of 
Customer 



Hall 



Hock 



Simp^oti 



Brown 



Carried to 
page i;i;6. 



198 BOOKKEEPING. 

month before entering the total to the credit of the 
creditor. In this manner all bills are entered and then 
journalized by totals at the end of the month. 

The tabulated specimen on page 197 shows the 
manner of keeping the "Invoice or Credit Ledger," 
showing opposite pages, one the memorandum account 
and the other the actual account. 

It will be noticed that all items are entered in a 
''Memorandum Account" and that at the end of the 
month the total is carried to the account page. In 
this way one page will do for the actual accounting 
and the following pages (Dr. as well as Cr.) can be 
used for the itemizing of the invoices. 

The total for the month is then charged to "Stock 
and Outside Work Account, " by a single monthly 
journal entry instead of by numerous daily entries. 
Where a great deal of stock is bought the saving of 
time by this manner of entering can readily be appre- 
ciated. The " Memorandum Accounts " are exceedingly 
handy for reference, avoiding the necessity of referring 
to the journal or to the invoice book or to the invoice 
file, etc. 

Estimates. — The estimates are made out on a sheet, 
letter size, and to this sheet are attached all communi- 
cations referring to the estimate, such as the original letter 
of inquiry, the typewritten carbon copy reply, and all 
outside estimates for paper, electros, engraving, etc., etc. 
These sheets are filed in a common letter file and are 
easily referred to. This method of keeping estimates 
with all information attached has proved very convenient 
and less cumbersome than keeping them in books, 
in connection with which it is always necessary to 
look up this letter or that letter in the file, which 



BOOKKEEPING. 199 

creates loss of time and generally a great deal of an- 
noyance. 



- "9 

Estimate for M 

Address _ 

Description 

Quantity , 

Size 

Colors 



Composition 

Press 

Paper . 

Composition 

Press 

Paper 

Plates . 



Sketches 

Engraving . 

(Perforating 

Eyeletting 

Numbering 

Cutting 

Packing and Delivering .... 

Binding 

Total . 

Percentage 
F=;timate s^ven $ Grand Total 



Monthly Profit and Loss Account. — The system of 
accounts employed by the Lotus Press makes it possible 
to get out a monthly profit and loss account. This is 



:200 BOOKKEEPING. 

done by closing accounts each month as per the table 
below. The "Stock and Outside Work Account" in- 
cludes everything that is used in the production of the 
finished job, such as paper, ink, postals, etc., etc: 

May loth, April rent and power . . $300 April sales . $10,000 

" wages 3,000 Discounts taken 90 

" stock and outside 

work .... 4,050 
'' general expense . . 1,000 
" discounts allowed . 90 
" complimentary printing 30 
'' otfice printing . . }o 
'' Profit ( gross ) . . i,S90 
( Carried to yearly profit 

and loss acct.) . $10,090 $10,090 



In case more stock and outside work is charged 
during the month to that account than is used during 
the month, a balance can be left on the account, or 
better yet carried to a standing account with an average 
balance of stock on hand, which can be increased or 
diminished according to the estimated stock on hand. 

The totals of monthly profit are carried to a yearly 
profit and loss account, where such items as dead 
accounts, interest on money, loss on machinery by wear 
and tear, insurance, accident insurance, advertising, and 
all other extra yearly expenses of ail kinds can be 
entered. 



CHAPTER XXI. 

MANAGEMENT OF EMPLOYEES. 

No matter how correctly a master printer may 
estimate, no matter how closely he may buy his stock, 
no matter how well he may know his trade, if he 
has not the co-operation of his employees, he will have 
a hard road to money-making. The workman who 
hates the boss can always injure him surreptitiously to 
a greater amount than he earns above board. It is 
then to the interest of every master printer to stand 
well with his men, to cultivate a spirit of interest in 
the business, a patriotism for the good name and 
credit of the firm. This can be accomplished only by 
being absolutely fair with employees, and carefully 
preserving their good will. It is a fact that some em- 
ployers who pay small wages secure more willing- 
service than others who pay the scale and over, simply 
because of their cordial and friendly ways. A wise 
liberality combined with a strict holding to account are 
the secrets of securing good service. 

I have been told that one of Theo. L. De Vinne's 
rules was " Know what a man can do, and see that 
he does it." Certain it is that at the De Vinne Press 
every man does a full day's work, and no set of men 
ever revered an employer more, for his kindness and 
liberalitv went hand in hand with exact strictness. 



202 MANAGEMENT OF EMPLOYEES. 

In order to insure the constant pushing along of 
work, and a production that is at all times equal to 
the ability of the men, an employer must do more than 
establish a system of daily reports. He must either 
know directly, or through some superintendent or 
manager in each department, according to the size of 
the office, just what each man does every day. If he 
does not, he will be constantly paying wages to some 
men who do not earn them. When an employee feels 
that some one above him actually knows just what he 
does every day, and when he is jogged up on days of 
small results, but gets a word of praise on days of 
hustling, then he is apt to do the best work of which 
he is capable. The careful manager will make a daily 
tour among all the men and pass a word or two with 
each, to let them know that he is in touch with what 
they are doing. It will be to one, "Are you going 
to get up your five pages of this to-day, Jones ? You 
did a big day Thursday. I'm looking to see you beat 
it. " And to another, "Ten o'clock, Jimmy, and only 
2,000 off. You're not breaking a record on this press 
to-day. Had to change that plate, eh ? Well, do it 
right, and we will find no fault." And to a third, 
** Will you get all the forms of Carruther's book to 
press this week ? 1 hope you can, as they are pushing 
us hard for them. Get them through, and your efforts 
will be appreciated." 

The employer who talks that way to his men lets 
them know that if they loaf, he will know it. And 
if he accompanies these injunctions to rush by a wise 
payment for holidays, and a due regard for the comfort 
of his men, he will get the best results. I abominate 
the keeping of men to the mark by any system of fines, 



MANAGEMENT OE EMPLOYEES. 20} 

or anything that tends to degrade them. When you 
find that you have men whom you cannot make work 
well, and keep up to the mark, or who work against 
your interests, discharge them relentlessly. If you have 
disturbing elements in your force, men who inflame 
the others to discontent and strikes, get rid of them 
quietly at your convenience. No matter how good a 
workman a man may be, he becomes a damage the 
moment he begins to work against the profit-earning of 
an office, and to sow discontent among the force. 

Every office is troubled more or less with incom- 
petents. The best men are scarce; men of the middling 
sort' are common, and incompetents all too plenty. The 
latter class have to be taken on during a rush, and are 
laid off with promptness when work slackens. It is 
worth the while of proprietors, however, to study the 
incompetents, for here and there among them are men 
capable of making good workmen, but who have failed 
to learn to do their work well simply through unfortu- 
nate circumstances. The employing printers of America 
have much to answer for in engaging boys ''to learn the 
trade," and turning them off when half fledged, with- 
out a chance to finish their technical training. Young 
men who have been thus deceived are often capable of 
making first-class workmen, if they are taught; but 
because they have not the faculty of picking up the 
trade during the odd times they get work, they are 
doomed to worry along, a nuisance to employers and 
of very little use to themselves. 

A case came to notice a few years ago, of a young 
man who had had about a week's work in a good office 
during a rush, and who was then told that he was no 
longer wanted. He said to the manager, "1 don't 



204 MANAGEMENT OF EMPLOYEES. 

understand why it is that I can't Keep a phice. I work 
the hardest I know how, and I have got on in seven 
offices during the past year, and yet not had three 
months" work." "You don't know your trade," said the 
manager, who had observed him, and noted that he 
was a "blacksmith." "I do the best I know how," 
the man repHed. "I'd do better if I had a chance in a 
good office, where they did fine work." "Yes, but you 
are not worth half wages to us," said the manager, "and 
you think you ought to have a journeyman's pay." " I'd 
work for mosf anything where I had a chance to learn," 
said the man. "It's hard lines getting little work, and 
nobody suited with what 1 do.'" ""Will you go to work 
for $7 a week," asked the manager, "if I give you a 
chance to learn as fast as your ability warrants.^"' "Yes, 
and be glad to."' The man went back to the case, and 
inside of three years he occupied a foreman's desk in 
that same office, and drew $22 every Saturday night. 

This story is true, and is only one of many that 
might be told if managers would take a little interest 
in poor fellows who never had a chance to learn the 
trade properly, and who are so generallv classed as 
incompetents, often through the fault of others quite as 
much as their own. If master printers will take hold of 
such as are deserving and teach them the trade, they 
will confer a boon not only on the men taught, but the 
trade generally. This is not always possible under trades 
union restrictions, but it is hoped that some day unions 
will cease to give working cards to men who have not 
fully learned their trades, but oblige them to serve as 
apprentices until they become competent. 

The harmonious working together of an office force 
is largely due to the management of the foreman or 



MANAGEMENT OE EMPLOYEES. 20y 

employer, who should be able to so far secure the good 
will of the men as to prevent the development of any 
feeling of jealousy between them, a jealousy that often 
arises because of the natural progress of the younger 
hands, as they are put forward on better work, and 
which is often the source of much trouble. The foreman 
should insist upon such carefulness and thoroughness 
of work at each stage of promotion that all hands alike 
may feel that any promotion made has been well earned. 

Among workingmen of intelligence, such as are 
usually found in the printing office, the sense of justice 
is the best security for an employer to depend upon 
for harmonious working, and if his employees have to 
acknowledge to themselves that they are always treated 
with consideration, that the rules and order of work in 
the establishment are such as are obviously necessary to 
the successful prosecution of the business, they naturally 
develop, almost without knowing it, a sense of interest 
in the success of the business, and are desirous to con- 
tribute to its prosperity, as well as to draw their wages. 

The manner alluded to of entering and working up 
apprentices, or boys and young men to learn the trade, 
is unquestionably the natural and most economical way 
of making good printers, doing justice to both employer 
and employed. But the degree of success attained will 
be largely due to the proper management of the employer 
or the foremen who represent him. To obtain the good 
will of the men it is not necessary to be especially 
familiar with them; this is a poor line of conduct, and 
it is even worse to exhibit a spirit of arrogance, or a 
disposition to be unduly arbitrary. The employer who 
lets a workman know that he thinks he is a better man 
than the employee generally makes an enemy. A modern 



20b MANAGEMENT OF EMPLOYEES. 

printing office is no place for the display of qualities 
that might be essential to discipline on the deck of a 
battleship at sea. 

I am rather opposed to formal rules. Some, of course, 
are necessary in every establishment, and the larger the 
plant, the more essential it is that certain arbitrary 
regulations should be enforced. Yet it is a fact that the 
posting up of a lot of hair-splitting rules tends to breed 
contempt in the minds of workmen, who are liable to 
violate them on every occasion that they can do so unde- 
tected, simply because they dislike the idea of such 
restrictions. In many offices there are a number of so- 
called cast-iron rules about trivial things, that might 
better never be formulated. Regulations requiring the 
keeping of the material in order or in the proper place, 
do not seem to call for rules, but a general enforcement 
of neatness, so obvious is the need of keeping things 
orderly in a printing office. Men can easily be brought 
to see this, as well as the necessity for most other simple 
matters of every-day discipline, conducing to the order 
of the office, or called for as a principle of economy, 
without the posting of any arbitrary rules on the sub- 
ject. 

Another difficulty with hard and fast rules is that 
they make no allowance for exceptions, which are bound 
to occur. No matter how good a rule may be, the 
slavish following of it will sooner or later lead to an 
absurdity or contradiction of the desired end. I have 
seen an office where there was a rule that there should 
be no distribution afternoons, because it interfered with 
certain rush work; but in that same office men would 
sometimes spend half an hour picking for sorts in an 
afternoon, when they might better have made an 



MANAGEMENT OF EMPLOYEES. 207 

exception to the rule, and distributed the matter that 
was wanted. I have also seen the men deliberately sit 
down and do nothing for a half hour when the foreman 
was out and no composition on hand, because they 
must not distribute at that hour. 

It is better to manage the men with few rules, and 
with a good understanding between master and men, 
so that the necessities and customs of the place be- 
come the recognized unwritten law of the establishment, 
which it is rather the pride of the workman to uphold, 
and which bear upon him with no unfeeling pressure. 
The men, especially where they have grown up in an 
office, come to see and appreciate not only the labor- 
saving character of such a course of management, but 
develop habits that affect their whole work, and assist 
them to bear in mind the interests of the employer, as 
in seeing that odd sorts are in proper places, quad 
boxes kept clean, and a hundred and one other matters 
in which intelligence, guided by good will, may be 
highly promotive of the interests of the employer. This 
is to be recognized constantly in things so small in 
themselves as to hardly call for special notice, but the 
aggregate of good or ill to the business thus affected is 
great, the possible ill being obviously equal to that of 
the possible good. 

In most offices, especially in the country and smaller 
cities, it is important to consider the influence which 
the employees may exert in bringing business to or 
diverting it from the printery. It counts for much in 
an employer's favor when all his workmen desire to 
throw work into his hands, and each, in his circle of 
acquaintance, is always ready to speak a good word 
where he thinks it may bring work to the office. 



208 MANAGEMENT OF EMPLOYEES. 

This is the natural way, the way in which things 
should work in an office where the treatment of the 
employees has been of a judicious kind. In larger 
establishments, also, the influence of the employee in 
getting work is not to be neglected, for although the 
results may not be so readily discernible, yet the 
influence counts often in unexpected quarters. An 
office rightly run is entitled to all the business which 
its humblest employee may control, as well as that of 
the most high-salaried solicitor or influential manager. 

A policy of conciliation and forbearance in all cases 
of trade disputes, differences as to wages, hours, etc., is 
too obviously advisable to call for special recommenda- 
tion; but far better than this is it to see that there is 
no occasion for dispute, that no question of a kind 
likely to cause trouble is allowed to go so far that 
lines will be distinctly drawn upon it between the 
workmen and the management. In foreseeing and pre- 
venting possible disputes, and in being so secure in 
the good will of the men that nothing of the kind can 
suddenly arise, lies a large part of the best kind of 
success in the management of the employees, for the 
good of all concerned. 

Undoubtedly, a general policy of arbitration between 
proprietors and workmen would settle labor difficulties 
without serious friction. It is not always possible to 
arbitrate a question. In what is called the sympathetic 
strike there is often no issue at all between the men 
of a particular office and their employer. But as a general 
thing, it is possible by the exercise of diplomacy to 
avoid a disastrous strike. When good workmen ask 
for a reasonable concession, they ought to have it granted 
them; when they demand something they want, but 



MANAGEMENT OF EMPLOYEES. 209 

which conditions will not afford, the situation should 
be fully explained to them, so that by reasonable and 
dispassionate discussion they may see that they are asking 
too much; when the demands are unreasonable, or 
involve a principle that an employer cannot allow to 
take root, such as that of dictation as to who shall be 
his customers, then the only good policy is to firmly 
resist to the end. But never invite a strike until diplo- 
macy is exhausted; never be the aggressor in straining 
relations with your men. A strike or lockout is war, 
and should never be accepted but as a last resort, for 
it dooms profits for a considerable period in the most 
successful establishments. 

When a strike is actually in existence, then is the 
time that an employer can profit by the good treat- 
ment of men in time past, many of whom will stand 
in with the house that has used them well, rather 
than join with those who seek to coerce it. The 
master printer should never allow himself to desert 
the men who stand with him in a strike. No later 
pressure from trades unions should ever cause him to 
forget the men who incurred the distrust of their fellows 
to cast their lot with him. 1 remember once seeing in 
a large Philadelphia office a consumptive old fellow 
doing about half a day's work in ten hours. Some 
one remarked that he was getting $19 a week, §3 
more than the scale. He was once worth that figure, 
and he had stuck by the firm when a b:;d strike was 
on, and they kept up his pay when he ran down hill, 
and sent his family $100 when he died. Some would 
call this charity, but it was also good management in 
a large office, for it assured an indemnity from future 
strikes. 



J2I0 MANAGEMENT OF EMPLOYEES. 

In the treatment of employees the "Golden Rule" is a 
good thing to follow both from an ethical and a business 
standpoint. Men are not machines; it is essential in 
some respects to conduct an office as if they were 
machines, for one must have mechanical system and 
regularity to produce results. But it is wrong to forget 
that workmen are human, that they have the same right 
to the good things of this world as the employer, and 
that upon their sympathy and good will a large part of 
the success of an establishment must always depend. 



CHAPTER XXll. 

THE employee's OPPORTUNITY. 

There are plenty of opportunities for advancement 
in the job printing business, because real ability is hard 
to find. True merit and capacity are sure to be recog- 
nized sooner or later, and application and intelligent 
endeavor will insure permanent positions at good 
wages, and advancement wherever practicable. 

The young man at the case or the feedboard who 
wants to rise to the top of his trade must engage in 
a great deal of self-education. He must know more 
than the mere trade of typesticking or making-ready; 
he must learn more than those about him — yes, than 
those above him— if he would climb. Too few recog- 
nize their own lack of general education, and only by 
appreciating their personal deficiencies can they rise to 
a higher grade of knowledge. 

A thorough knowledge of spelling, punctuation and 
grammar is essential to the making of good compos- 
itors, and most of them become fair spellers, middling 
punctuators and indifferent grammarians. If you are a 
young printer, resolve that you will know all there is 
to know about these subjects. Become a good speller, 
not only of common words, but broaden your vocabu- 
lary by studying the latest dictionary. Learn all the ins 
and outs of punctuation and capitalization from the 
same source, or by purchasing and studying the latest 
books on these topics. Study grammar, first as the 



2 12 THE EMPLOYEES OPPORTUNITY. 

schoolboy studies it, and then as the writer does, learn- 
ing the niceties of grammatical expression, and the 
nature of popular blunders. These last are technically 
known as faulty diction, and it is the duty of good 
printers to correct these when observed in the copy of 
their patrons. It is an intimate knowledge of these 
things that fits a compositor, when the opportunity 
comes, for taking a place at the proof-reader's desk, 
and rising to the top of that branch of the printer's craft. 
The study of the branches mentioned is not wasted 
even if the compositor never takes up regular reading 
of proofs. Men with such knowledge are most useful 
in medium sized ofifices, where a compositor may be 
required to divide up his time in several ways. Think 
of the great number of such offices that have not busi- 
ness enough to employ a man wholly as proof-reader. 
It is in these particularly that the opportunity exists for 
the advancement of the compositor who is educated to 
the correct use of English. The man of all-around 
knowledge is of increased value to the small plant. 
Unfortunately there are few college graduates in the 
printing business, as beginners generally are brought in 
at about the age of fifteen and receive no more regular 
schooling after that time. In many printeries the col- 
lege man is sneezed at as an impractical upstart with 
a little knowledge of Greek and Latin, perhaps, but ot 
not much account for every-day work. If the college 
man could know the practical side of the trade, or if 
the practical printer could be brought to a better reali- 
zation of the value of the liberal education of the 
college graduate, and emulate his learning, then there 
might be developed more educated printers who would 
be truly fitted to some modern honor comparable with 



THE employee's OPPORTUNITY. 21^ 

the wearing of swords, the dignity said to have been 
conferred upon some early members of the craft. 

Knowledge is power; knowledge will get money, 
and money will get almost anything. Equip yourself 
with knowledge, young printer, and you will get along 
in this business. It is not only book knowledge that 
is referred to, but every sort of knowledge bearing on 
the trade. The job compositor who has cultivated his 
artistic taste, and spends no more time in setting up 
attractive work than others do in setting commonplace 
work, is more valuable than the one who has no taste, 
or having it, occupies so much time in securing good 
typographical effects as to leave his employer no profit. 
If the compositor can also be relied upon for typographic 
correctness, saving the time and oversight of the proof- 
reader, he is even more valuable. If, besides the above, 
he can profitably superintend the work of others he is 
still more valuable. The man who works with his hands 
only, no matter how hard he works, is largely a tool, 
and is not as important or valuable as the man who can 
use his brains, or the one who uses hands and brains. 

Never be afraid of knowing too much or of displac- 
ing those above you. There is plenty of room at the 
top of the printing business for more educated activity. 
The good apprentice is the first boy to be put on 
display work; the compositor with the clean proof is 
the first to be called to the reader's desk; the apt 
feeder is the one who is put in charge of the press 
when the pressman is sick or incapacitated; the work- 
men who manifest all-around ability are the ones who 
are chosen for promotion to positions as foremen and 
superintendents. The employee who hustles will 
almost InviTriably find the opportunity by the time he 



214 THE EMPLOYEES OPPORTUNITY. 

is ready for it. When he does not, and it becomes 
apparent that circumstances will prevent his advance- 
ment where he is, he had better look for a chance to 
get in elsewhere into a position in the line of promotion. 

If an office is given over to toadyism, and you 
cannot rise except by sacrificing your self-respect, look 
out for another place. You may be sure that there are 
plenty of proprietors who know just what their men 
do, and who will reward good service; and plenty of 
foremen who will like you, rather than be jealous of 
you if you do honest work. But do not expect pro- 
motion until it is earned. When you take a new 
position you must prove your value patiently before 
you can expect to be advanced. If the firm for which 
you work is a successful one, and its members fair 
people, be satisfied to work and wait, and in due time 
the opportunities will come for you to show that you 
are worth more money or an advanced position, and 
you will be recognized and rewarded. 

Probably every good printer who advances to a 
position as foreman desires at times to take another 
step forward, and embark as a [proprietor. This is a 
move that requires the utmost care and consideration. 
It is comparable to a step in the dark, leading one 
knows not whither. Those who are moved to go into 
business are counseled to ponder well the opening 
chapters of this book. They must also remember that 
nine out of ten v/ho go into business fail, largely 
through lack of consideration of all the conditions. In 
leaving a good position as foreman, with a stated 
salary and a sure thing, to take up with the uncertain- 
ties of business in a small way, the printer must 
expect first, to have to live on a reduced income for 



THE EMPLOYEES OPPORTUNITY. 21^ 

some years, as he will have to put everything into the 
business to make it go. Then he must bear in mind 
that he will have to give credit, and that he will get 
little credit himself at the start, so that in six months, 
even in a very small business, he will find that $500 
is constantly being owed him — $500 that hj can never 
collect up — and which amount grows larger and larger 
as his business increases, representing the money that 
is coming from those who owe him. As fast as these 
debtors pay up — or as most of them pay — new credits 
are demanded; and so he goes on, lending money to 
his customers when he needs it so badly himself, be- 
cause under the circumstances there is nothing else that 
he can do. Neither the beginner in business nor the 
old house can escape this condition ; yet the beginner 
seldom considers it until he gets into the scrape. Then 
he finds himself always short of funds, scrambling to 
meet notes, to pay for additions to his plant, or for 
sorts, or loans, or something, and his family have 
to live short, take store orders, and scrape along 
somehow until some day when he either fails alto- 
gether — which is the usual thing — or by dint of careful 
management and good sense, pulls the business through, 
he knows not just how, and begins to find that he is 
making enough to draw a salary as good as he pays 
his foreman. When this stage is reached, there is a 
good chance of permanent success, if the printer does not 
get inflated ideas, and try to do a big business all at once. 
The employee, who thinks about starting in the 
printing business for himself is cautioned to consider 
well the cost, and to disabuse his mind of the idea 
that he can do work for less than those now engaged 
in the business and make monev. This idea, so 



2l6 THE employee's OPPORTUNITY. 

prevalent among employees, springs from a lack of 
information as to the numerous small costs that attach 
to a job of printing. The employee naturally thinks that 
the principal cost is his wages, as that is the amount 
that he sees and knows. If he is getting twenty-five or 
thirty cents an hour, and his employer sells his time for 
sixty cents, he thinks the employer has a very soft thing, 
sitting in an office and raking in as much pay as all 
the hands put together. Little he knows that the 
other costs are even greater than the wage costs, and 
that for every hour of the compositor's time that the 
proprietor sells at sixty cents he has to furnish at least an 
hour of some other person's time — it may be an hour 
made up of a fraction of the foreman's, the errand boy's, a 
distributer's, a proof-reader's, a type-founder's, a land- 
lord's, a mortgage holder's, or any of a dozen others — 
but it will always average at least another hour in 
value of somebody's time that must be paid for in some 
way, and that eats up as much or more money than the 
direct wages for which he can charge the customer. 

It is in underestimating this cost of production that 
the employee who thinks of starting out for himself 
commonly makes his first great mistake; he does not 
realize what all these things cost, and so he exagger- 
ates the possible profits in the business. The only 
safe way to judge of the prospects of success in 
starting a new printing office, lies in not guessing 
at anything. When you have saved a little money 
and want to go into business, try first and secure a 
minor ' partnership with your employer, making a 
contract that will allow you to withdraw again at the 
end of a year if dissatisfied. He or some other estab- 
lished printer may let you in, and thus give you the 



THE employee's OPPORTUNITY. 21'] 

chance to learn something of business management, 
and the exact cost of doing work. 

Do not make the mistake of thinking that because 
you have been a foreman that you are a business man 
— that you can take hold of and manage a small plant 
entirely and make money, when you are without any 
special knowledge of business methods. These have 
to be learned, just as composition and presswork have 
to be acquired, and if you go in blindly, you will make 
as big a blunder of the whole business as would a 
plow-boy. who came green into a printing office, and 
essayed to take charge without serving an apprentice- 
ship. Everything in the business world has to be 
learned; such knowledge can be picked up only by 
patient study and observation. Let the employee who 
has an itching to go into business take a year or two 
first to study the methods of successful printers, and 
in reading the trade papers, and in getting at the cost 
of work. If he does this faithfully, the chances are 
that in most cases after two years of investigation he 
will say to himself: "What a lucky thing that I did 
not start in when I wanted to. 1 can see now that I 
was so green that I should have lost every dollar. 
Perhaps 1 have a good deal yet to learn; I guess that 
I will wait another year." 

Thus by learning the road first, and traveling it 
cautiously, may the active and intelligent employee 
hope to raise himself from the most humble position to 
one com'manding the best salary, and finally place himself 
where he can embark with reasonable safety on the sea 
of business for himself, realizing the American ideal of 
independence, which in this case may be defined as 
owning one's own business and owing nobody. 



CHAPTER XXlll. 

DANGER IN SIDE VENTURES. 

The printer who has built up a successful little 
business is pretty sure to be solicited at times to engage 
in side ventures, or his own energy will often suggest 
to him the propriety of embarking in some kindred 
trade. Perhaps he will be sorely tempted at times to 
engage in some of these ventures, and therefore it seems 
proper to throw out a few hints that may be of assistance 
to the printer in making a decision in such cases. 

As a general rule it is a safe proposition in business 
that one's energies should be confined to one line of 
work, refusing all allurements to sidetrack one's interest 
in the main business to which one must look for sus- 
tenance and an income. Those men who have made 
marked successes are usually great developers of trade; 
they give their best brains to the enlargement and 
increase of their original business and to the swelling of 
the legitimate profits. All the large printeries of the 
country were once small printing offices; that they have 
been developed to their present capacities shows the room 
there may be for development by others. Somewhere in 
this land to-day, are a hundred small printers who will 
have large printing establishments before another quarter 
of a century has rolled away, because of their superior 
push, intelligent hustle, and ability to stick to the one 



DANGER IN SIDE VENTURES. 219 

thing and make the most of it. No man ever achieved 
great business success by pushing a hundred schemes 
and ventures at the same time. There is a limit to all 
ability, and he who draws his thoughts, his time or his 
money away from his printery must expect that printery 
to suffer, to stand still, or at least be retarded from 
growing as it would grow if it had the benefit of all his 
best ideas and of his personal supervision. 

A man cannot hope to be a successful printer and at 
the same time run a grocery, carry on an express business, 
hold office, engage in stock companies, and give his time 
to this, that, and the other thing. Too many irons in the 
fire have burned because of distracted attention. If you 
have decided to make printing a business, and have half 
a show in making it go, stick to your print shop and 
build it up, and let side issues alone until you have done 
so well that you have surplus money and surplus time 
to invest. As surely as you go into other things you 
will neglect your printing office, and perhaps reduce or 
cut off an income on which you could otherwise depend 
absolutely, for a speculation that may bear nothing but 
Dead Sea fruit. 

Of course there are times when a man does well to 
abandon printing and go into some other business, but 
with such cases this book has nothing to do. If a man 
has a printing office and is making it pay or can make 
it pay, it is his business as a printer to push that business 
in preference to everything else. If he listens to allure- 
ments to go into any foreign line he must look largely to 
that line for returns, for he must expect the printery to 
suffer. When the printer has an almost irresistible desire 
to go into some side venture, the wise thing is always 
to wait; and when his printing trade is more solidly 



220 DANGER IN SIDE VENTURES. 

established, when he is free from debt, and has the cash 
to put into something else, then if he still has the desire 
to try the side line, and can turn over a portion of the 
care of his business to other hands with safety, and 
without losing the reins, then perhaps he may gratify 
his wish to try the other business, for if he sinks all 
he puts into it, he is not ruined, and still has the 
printing business for support. But it is little less than 
suicidal for a man who has a printing office half 
paid for to take receipts that ought, to go to reducing 
his mortgages, and invest them in outside schemes. 
Such a policy persisted in rarely fails to bring entire 
ruin. 

There are many kindred lines of trade, however, 
that tend to build up a printing office, such as binding, 
publishing, journalism, electrotyping, etc. It is often 
the case that some of these may be taken up with 
increased profit to the printery, and with great chances 
of success, because one branch of the business feeds 
the other. 

Perhaps the publication of a newspaper or periodical 
is the sort of business most frequently offered or sug- 
gested to the printer as a side venture, and many times 
such publications are started and become the mainstay 
of a printing office, bringing it directly or indirectly the 
most of its work. Yet it must be borne in mind that 
nineteen out of every twenty publications fail to pay a 
profit, and cease to be issued, and that the printers who 
take an ownership in any of the nineteen may be 
greater losers than if they had been simply hired 
printers to do the work, with no interest in the profits 
that never came. It is only in the twentieth case that 
the publication lives and p:iys, and it is a very shrewd 



DANGER IN SIDE VENTURES. 22 1 

printer who can determine in advance which publi- 
cation of the score is going to tally a success. 

Extra caution should be exercised before making 
any investment or taking any chances in the publishing 
line. If a printer has also a practical training on the 
business side of a newspaper, trade paper, etc., under- 
standing how to make such a publication pay, he may 
often run one advantageously in connection with his 
printing office. But for a printer who is only a printer, 
and who knows nothing of journalism, to plunge into 
a newspaper venture simply because he has the type 
and presses to get it out, is almost sure to be an 
unwise undertaking. Newspaper publishing is a busi- 
ness not learned in a week or a month, or a year, and 
to experiment in it is to invite the loss of money. If 
you have a printery and do not know the newspaper 
business, better stay out of it, or if reasons present 
themselves that seem to force you to go in, at least get 
a partner, or interest a trained journalist who knows 
what he is about, that you may have a chance of 
getting returns for the money and time you put into it. 

If you do go into a newspaper or publication of 
any sort, keep separate accounts for the different parts 
of the business; otherwise you may err in your judg- 
ment as to where profits come from. You may be 
sinking the 'profits of the printery in the publication 
without realizing it, if you do not keep the figures 
before you; or you may make a go of the publication 
and be carrying on the printing office as a dead load. 
Do not allow accounts to get so mixed that you can 
deceive yourself in such matters. 

A bindery is a common adjunct of a printery, and 
often it may be well to add one to the plant if the 



222 DANGER IN SIDE VENTURES. 

printery has work enough to keep one going, and a 
competent man can be found to run it. But binding 
and ruling is a close competitive busirfess, like job 
printing, and unless such a branch is run intelligently, ■ 
it will not pay. If you do not understand much of the 
business, and if you have to depend much on the work 
of other printers to make it pay, better stay out. It 
is wiser to pay ten per cent, more than cost to some 
reputable binder to handle your work, and have it 
done rightly, than it is to do it yourself, and divert time 
from the printing office, when that time is needed there. 
The same is broadly true of electrotyping. A 
printing office having enough work to keep a foundry 
going may do well with one, but as it requires a very 
large printing plant to support a foundry this is an 
exceptional case. The printer in a large city, having a 
moderate business, who considers the starting of a 
foundry to supply other printers, must bear in mind 
that his competitors in printing are not likely to prefer 
to send their work where he can inspect it and know 
what they are doing. They will prefer to patronize 
some other foundry. In a moderate sized city, where 
no independent electrotype foundry exists, it is fre- 
quently a good investment for the largest printing 
office to establish a small foundry, and do its own 
work, thus avoiding the delays of sending forms t^ 
another city. Such a foundry may reasonably be 
expected to obtain the patronage of printers in the 
same city, because of the nearness and convenience, 
and such work may be profitable by filling in the time 
of the men. In the course of time, however, such a 
foundry, if located in a growing city, must expect to 
lose its outside trade to some well-managed foundry, 



DANGER IN SIDE VENTURES. 22} 

that will be established independent of any printing 
office. For these reasons electrotyping, though, a good 
business in itself, is commonly a poor business for the 
printer to engage in. 

Many printers find politics inviting, because of the 
large amount of printing to be given out by town, 
city, and state governments. They sometimes seek 
office in order to control such work, and as the prices 
paid are apt to be much above ordinary commercial 
values, the bait is often very tempting. But those who 
have been through the political mill know that in the 
end it usually costs as much or more to get a political 
pull as it is worth. Men go into politics for business 
profits, as they go into trade. The printer who goes 
in ordinarily finds that the demands made on his time 
and pocket-book offset the extra price obtained for 
the work he gets, and the methods that have to be 
resorted to are only too apt to destroy his sense of probity 
and honorable dealing. In small towns, where there 
are but two or three printers, it is often, nay usually, 
wise for a printer to take enough interest in the 
success of his political party to secure their work, but 
aside from this the wise rule for the average printer is 
to let politics severely alone. 

As for investing in stock companies or the like, 
when the wily promoter comes along and seeks this 
method of getting printing without paying the cash, there 
is but one safe rule — keep out of them. If you must 
invest outside the printery put your money into things 
that you can control and understand. No stock 
company controlled by strangers is going to give up 
to you large profits when they are made — which they 
ordinarily are not. The best of them, when they 



224 DANGER IN SIDE VENTURES. 

succeed, will only let you have six per cent, on your 
investment, and eat up the rest in salaries or emolu- 
ments to the originators and larger holders of the 
company's stock. The printer should be equally shy of 
all new things in which he is asked to invest, either 
in cash or by giving printing. As a rule they will not 
pay, and the printer is only asked to go in to give 
some one else a chance to make money, himself taking 
only chances of getting back a portion of his investment. 
Such things are all gambles, with the odds against you. 
When a printer really has arrived at that happy stage 
when his business is so prosperous as to require no 
further investment, and his earnings seek some other 
outlet, he has commonly acquired such a knowledge of 
the world and of business methods as not to require 
any advice from the author of this book. Such a man 
is not easily led into schemes and unprofitable ventures. 
Yet even such must keep an eye on themselves, and 
see to it that their caution does not wane because of 
continued money-making. There are more than a few 
who make mistakes after amassing wealth, and demon- 
strate that it is as much of an art to keep money as to 
make it. Let the printer whose cash seeks outside 
investment look for those things which yield small but 
safe returns. Think not of the amount of the interest, 
but of the safety of the principal. There are members 
of our craft who become large holders of real estate, 
and in established business properties. These do not 
speculate; they take hold of only sure things. If such 
a one were approached for advice by younger printers 
whose businesses are but half built up, with queries as 
to the advisability of going into some side venture, I 
am sure that the advice would almost always be — don't. 



CHAPTER XXIV. 

SYSTEMATIC SAVING. 

The object of doing business is to make money; 
that object is largely defeated if a portion of the money 
made is not saved, giving the earner an accumulation for 
emergencies and for old age. The man who makes 
money and spends it as fast as it comes in has little more 
reputation among his fellows than the man who cannot 
earn any money above a bare subsistence; he is not a 
force to be counted on in the commercial world; he can- 
not take hold of and move any large enterprises as can 
the man who accumulates and thus possesses reserve 
power. I do not know that printers are any more apt 
to neglect saving than those in other trades, for as a rule 
the world is improvident; where one saves there are 
always ten to spend. This chapter may therefore apply 
quite as well to men in any other business, yet I hope 
that all printers who read this book will consider this 
chapter quite as important as any other that may deal 
more directly or more closely with the printing interests.. 
The proverb has it that ''you cannot have your cake 
and eat it, too;" which one may interpret for the present 
case as meaning that the printer who spends all that he 
earns secures no benefits for the future, only those of the 
present. The object of going into business is often largely 
that a man may have something that will earn him an 



226 SYSTEMATIC SAVING. 

income when he is sick, or on a vacation, or old and 
partially incapacitated. Whether a man's business brings 
him in $20 or $200 a w^eek, it is his duty in seeking 
the highest good for himself and his family, to save for 
the future. It is always possible for the man who earns 
$20 weekly to lay by $2; and the man who earns $200 
a week may lay by $100. But the amount to be saved 
is of less importance than is the fixing of a habit of 
saving systematically. The man who has a rule for 
saving, who obliges himself to save a certain percentage 
of his earnings, whether in good times or bad, will sooner 
or later attain a competency; while the man who saves 
spasmodically can never be very sure what he will accu- 
mulate. 

It is a matter of common observation that few 
persons can save much unless they do it systematically, 
engaging in some way to lay by so much regularly, 
instead of economizing haphazard as they feel like 
doing. For a systematic means of forcing one's self to 
suitable saving, I know of nothing better than the 
building association or life insurance. Each involves 
regular stipulated payments, which must be met, or a 
slight loss follows, and this stimulates the individual 
to keep up the saving, so that in time it becomes a 
habit. 

The building association almost universally pays at 
least six per cent, interest, and forms a convenient 
means for an investor to lay by a stated sum every 
month, that may accumulate without his feeling it 
materially. When the sum invested amounts to a few 
hundred dollars or more, and the printer has use for 
some money temporarily in his business, as for the 
purpose of obtaining a considerable discount, he can 



SYSTEMATIC SAVING. 227 

use the investment as security for borrowing very 
nearly its flice value. This is done in various ways, 
some building associations making temporary loans to 
their members, in other cases local banks advancing on 
three months' notes with the building association stock 
as collateral. But, whatever the special plan of any 
building association, it is a recognized portion of the 
value of the investment that it allows the investor to 
use the money at intervals when he sees an advantage 
therein; and this is specially valuable to the printer, 
who is often buying considerable quantities of paper, 
or a new press, or a composing-machine, or an outfit 
of type, and who can save ten to fifteen per cent, 
thereon by buying for spot cash. It is also a very 
material advantage that the payments are required 
monthly, thus in a manner enforcing the regular saving 
of a certain amount. I know of no class of business 
to which the building association plans seem to appeal 
more strongly than to the printers running small or 
medium sized offices. 

Similar arguments apply to investment in life in- 
surance. Every careful man with a family provides for 
the future of his little ones, and the insurance policy 
affords a way of making a larger provision than can be 
done otherwise in a short time. The modern plans of 
policies are so favorable, that after a few payments a 
loss is not possible, and in time, policies have borrow- 
ing value also, like the building association stock. 

Let us suppose that the average printer in business 
could afford to save only I5 a week, and that he puts 
$2 of this in insurance and $3 in a building association. 
If he is young the insurance money will pay for a $5,000 
policy, which is enough to make him feel that his family 



228 SYSTEMATIC SAVING. 

would not suffer seriously should he die prematurely. 
The $3 a week invested in the building association will 
have a borrowing value of $500 in three years, and in 
ten years will amount to $2,500. If the printer has 
managed his affairs in the printing office wisely during 
that period, so as to add a few thousands to the value 
of his plant and increase his income, he can then begin 
to feel that he has made a success, and can take life 
more easily, knowing that his future is secure. 

Another reason why the master printer should invest 
at least a portion of his savings outside of the printings 
business is founded on the policy of not placing all one's 
eggs in one basket. Accidents will happen in the best 
managed printeries, and if some chance that cannot be 
foreseen wipes out the printery and the labor of years, 
there is then the outside investment to fall back upon. 
The failure of a large and trusted customer, a flood, or 
a riot, or some similar disaster against which insurance 
is impossible, have wrecked printing offices before now, 
and will again. Man is helpless when Fate intervenes, 
and he can only exercise a wise precaution in all his 
business affairs. One of these wise precautions certainly 
lies in a regular investment of savings outside of the 
printing office, and I consider that the printer who fails 
to do this is making as much of a mistake as the printer 
who fails to insure his property. 

There will be many printers in business who will 
dissent from the idea of investing outside of the 
printery, saying that they prefer to build up their 
offices, and put back into the business everything they 
save. This sounds well, and 1 admit that the policy is 
carried out satisfactorily by many printers; yet, I feel 
confident that the importance of outside investment 



SYSTEMATIC SAVING. 229 

should always be considered by every printer who 
saves. Once well started it permits the raising of cash, 
and consequent discounting of bills, in a way that can 
not be done if the money is in printing machinery. 
No bank cares to loan money on machinery; it is 
regarded as most unsatisfactory security, and rightly, 
because its value falls fifty to seventy-five per cent, as 
soon as the owner has no use for it. Then, again, the 
printer who thinks he is saving by investing in new 
machinery for his plant is liable to delude himself. 
How often has some such colloquy as this been heard 
among proprietors of the smaller printing offices: 

A — '* I made $2,000 last year above my living." 
B — "That's good; where is the money.?" 
A — "Oh, in the business. I have $300 more 
of book accounts than last year, and bought 
$1,700 of new machinery." 
How very possible it is in such a case that the 
$300 increase in accounts will always be dead on the 
books, and that the $1,700 of new machinery was 
needed to keep the plant up to its former standard, so 
that there has been no real saving. If A had put 
money in the building association he would know 
certainly that it was saved. 

If there are savings, it is often the case that new 
machinery for the printery is not really needed, so that 
it is unwise to reinvest the money. There are printers 
who buy new type and new machines principally 
because they like to see them come in. Every true 
printer in business takes a lively pleasure in seeing new 
material added to his plant; but this is a feeling to be 
guarded against rather than encouraged, for the object 
of doing business is to make money, not to gather 



230 SYSTEMATIC SAVING. 

together a great collection of tools and machines. Let 
the printer therefore always be careful about enlarging 
his plant, remembering that there are other investments 
which may prove more profitable, and that it is best to 
consider these carefully before deciding on an increased 
capacity of his establishment. 

The plan of investing savings in new machinery or 
type is sometimes a disastrous one, in that a printer finds 
himself with too large a plant for the business that natur- 
ally comes to him, and so is led to go into the field of 
others and cut prices in order to get more work. This 
sort of investment of saving is as wasteful in its results 
as spending the money in racing and riotous living. 
Machinery should be bought only when it is imperative — 
when large permanent orders will be lost if it is not 
purchased. For further and fuller suggestions along this 
line see the chapter on ''Buying." 

The printer who would be successful in business has 
to consider yet another side of the question of savings. 
Thus far I have written only of what the printer might 
or should do with his savings from his earnings or profits 
in the business. In order to have such savings in pocket 
he must practice a wise economy in all things, and save 
all unnecessary expenditures. I do not mean to counsel 
a niggardly course or extreme penuriousness, for I be- 
lieve that these are as close to financial suicide as over- 
liberality. A man must avoid the reputation of being 
mean, at the same time that he must manage to save 
wherever he reasonably can, and to stop unnecessary 
outgo. This is gone into at length in the chapter entitled 
** Leakages." It is manifestly a bad plan to try to save 
money by cutting down wages of employees, who are 
thereby put out of sympathy with the office; it is also 



SYSTEMATIC SAVING. 23 1 

bad to purchase only cheap grades of paper and ink, or 
to gratify a miserly taste for low rents and cheap sur- 
roundings to the damage of the reputation of a business. 
The true way to save is to see that you get what you 
pay for; that every employee gives you the full number 
of hours; that every press is run at the best speed of 
which it is capable without damage; that you do not 
pay for useless and unnecessary small articles, much less 
large ones. It is a real saving to discount a bill for new 
type, when it would be no saving to buy some second- 
hand type at a less price; it is a real saving to spend 
enough money on bookkeeping to know just where 
every cent of your money goes, and to study the figures 
occasionally and learn whether there are not some useless 
expenditures. 

No man can get very far ahead in the world who 
does not cultivate the habit of saving. No income will 
stand continued extravagance; every man who has 
earned a fortune has learned the lesson of wise economy. 
There are few wealthy men in the printing business, 
the cause being more due to undercharging than a lack 
of saving; yet there are many who would prosper if 
they gave as much attention to economies as they do 
to figuring down the price of work. One thing is 
certain, that the printer who saves regularly and system- 
atically will never be sold out by the sheriff as long as he 
adheres to the policy of laying by a part of every 
dollar that he makes. 



CHAPTER XXV. 

PARTNERSHIPS. 

An entire book might be written concerning partner- 
ships, without exhausting the subject, leaving yet many 
last words to be said on many phases of the question ; 
in fact, there are books treating the matter at great 
length from a legal standpoint. The conditions of 
trade are such that partners are frequently essential to 
carrying on a business. In other words, I may say 
that partnerships are a necessary evil, for in the 
abstract, a partnership is a thing to be avoided. A 
man should own and control his own business, and 
have his own way, if he would get the full satisfaction 
of doing business, and reap the entire reward of what 
genius he may possess. The writer's advice to all 
printers is that wherever possible the best way is to 
''go it alone" and avoid partnerships; because this is 
not always possible, this chapter is written. 

A partnership should not be entered into without 
extreme care and positive evidence that it is necessary 
to the conduct of the printery. Making a partnership 
is like getting married — it is for better or worse, and 
it is very difficult to know which until it has been tried 
for a few years, and if it proves for the worse it is hard 
to get out. It is a foolish plan to take a partner, as 
many young printers do, solely for company, to have 
an associate with whom they can talk over business 



PARTNERSHIPS. 2^} 

matters. Partners should be taken because more brains, 
more superior oversight of the kind that cannot be hired, 
is required for the proper conduct of the printing office, 
or because the money brought into the business by the 
partnership is absolutely needed for its profitable con- 
tinuance. 

The chief difficulty with a profitable partnership arises 
from the fact that when two or more men become owners 
in a business there are then two or more separate and 
distinct interests in control, and what may be to the 
interest of one may not always be to the interest of 
another. Human nature is selfish, and each partner is apt 
to want his own way, and one will want more leisure 
than another, or one will want to make expenditures that 
another considers foolish, and so on; the possibilities for 
dissension being in existence all the time. Only a wise 
forbearance on the part of all, and a sincere effort to 
subordinate one's own desires to the good of the whole 
business can make a partnership an entire success. 

In considering the acceptance of a partner, first 
figure on the value that his money will be to the 
business, and determine whether it will certainly enable 
you to make a larger profit from the half or other 
fraction you retain, than you would make from the 
whole if you had it by yourself. If you feel assured 
that the money is positively needed, and that your 
remaining portion of the business will yield a larger 
increase for the investment, then study to see whether 
you cannot get the money in some way without the 
man, and whether this would not be the most profit- 
able arrangement for you. 

The character of the person taken as a partner is 
of even greater importance than the money he may 



234 PARTNERSHIPS. 

bring to a business. If he is not honest, he is dear 
at any price; if he has cranky notions, he may prove a 
perpetual thorn in the side; if he be lazy, he may not 
earn his share of the profits; if he is careless or reckless, 
he may ruin the concern; if he is incapable, he may 
prove a heavy drag on the business; if he lacks intelli- 
gence or business capacity, even though willing, he 
may in time become an intolerable nuisance. A partner 
should be a man who can be relied upon to manage 
some branch of the business without being told how, 
one who can relieve others of a portion of the cares of 
oversight, and who is capable of making his depart- 
ment profitable. A good printer and inside manager 
may find a good partner in one who is a natural 
salesman, and who has the capacity for taking orders 
at good prices. If each is good in his sphere, the two 
may do better together than they could do apart; in 
fact, they may sometimes be really indispensable to each 
other. But where there are two partners, both natu- 
rally inside men, or both naturally outside men, there is 
no good combination. The firm of inside men will be 
apt to do good work, and not much of it, with little 
profit; and the firm of outside men will be apt to pile 
up a large number of orders, and do cheap and unsatis- 
factory work. There are many partnerships that fail 
though both men are really capable and pushing, because 
they happen to be wholly unsuited and unsatisfactory 
to each other, and continually interfere with and upset 
each other's plans. Many of us have seen printing firms 
composed of partners and doing a trifling, petty business, 
but who on separating and going into competition have 
each prospered and made money that they never could 
make when together. 



PARTNERSHIPS. 235 

When a partnership has been fully decided upon as 
the most advisable thing, the next thought of those 
interested should be to put the terms in writing so 
plainly that there can be no room for differences later. 
Everything that is expected of a partner should go down 
in black and white, and if possible a penalty should be 
attached for neglect of duty. A way should also be 
provided for closing or winding up the partnership, or 
withdrawing from it without involving later dispute. 
The more completely these things are gone into on paper 
the less likelihood there is of future differences and 
disagreements. Do not be afraid in drawing up partner- 
ship papers that you will hurt anybody's feelings by 
specifying everything that you expect of your partner; 
get in everything, and tell him to get in everything that 
he expects of you. When you have all the points down, 
go to a good lawyer, one whom you are sure that you 
could trust, and get him to put them in legal shape, and 
when the papers are signed you will be as safe as written 
agreements can make you. Do not think because you 
know a man well that you can omit the formality of 
drawing up partnership papers, or that the merest 
skeleton of papers will do. The writer has known of 
two partnership cases, in both of which the men were 
hard workers and intelligent, yet, who lost every dollar 
they put in certain businesses, because they carelessly 
assumed that there was no need of partnership papers. 
The printer who is wise will not take any chances, but 
profit from the experience of others, and so avoid the 
almost entire losses that come when there are partnership 
suits and receiverships growing purely out of disagree- 
ments and misunderstandings. 

A man who has not been in a partnership, or who 



236 PARTNERSHIPS. 

has never come in close contact with a partnership 
dispute, can have Httle appreciation of the way in which 
partners in business are tied to each other's acts by the 
law. One partner becomes virtually responsible for the 
acts of the others. If one runs off with or squanders 
the partnership property in the most thievish manner the 
sufferer has no remedy through criminal prosecution. 
One partner can do anything he likes with any and all 
property connected with the business, and the only 
remedy of the other is a civil suit at law, which never 
brings any saving or satisfaction. No matter how large 
or profitable a business may be, if the partners get into 
a desperate quarrel and mvoke the law, the entire assets 
are almost sure to be frittered away and dissipated, 
affording only pickings for lawyers and court officials. 
The printer who gets into a serious quarrel with a partner 
is advised by all means to settle it in some manner, no 
matter how much he has to give way, rather than to 
call upon the courts to settle the dispute. There is no 
money in lawsuits, except for the legal fraternity. When 
a difference between partners become so grievous as to 
threaten the business, and the terms of a dissolution 
cannot be mutually agreed upon, it is a wise way for 
each to put all his affairs in the hands of a trusted friend, 
assigning full powers to the same. The two friends so 
named can then choose an arbitrator, and the three 
together can arrange a settlement, to the acceptance of 
which the two partners should be absolutely bound in 
advance. In this way a reasonably fair adjustment of 
difficulties and a dissolution can be made, without 
wrecking the business, which both have an interest in 
seeing preserved. 

A small printing office does not need more than 



PARTNERSHIPS. 237 

one head, while a large printery often demands a 
number of executives, because there are more im- 
portant things to be decided upon than one man can 
attend to. It has sometimes been thought wise by men 
having a prosperous and growing business, to interest 
the most efficient of their help as minor partners, and 
qualify them to take executive charge of certain por- 
tions of the work. The best way to do this is usually 
through the organization of a stock company, which is 
a flexible sort of partnership, permitting ownership of 
small portions of a business, and the retaining of the 
control by the larger owner or owners. Personal liability 
can be avoided, this being one of the serious dangers 
in a simple partnership. The incorporated company 
form of organization allows a business to continue after 
the death of the principal owner without being tangled 
up by executors, contested wills, etc. Every large print- 
ing concern, in which more than one man is interested, 
should take advice on the matter of incorporation, which 
is now universally recognized as the safest way of 
carrying on trade where many interests are involved. In 
a company, the principal proprietor may retain his 
majority of the stock, and take in capable men to run 
the departments, allowing them such minority holdings as 
they are able to pay for. The partners so taken in under 
a proper arrangement would have to earn their salaries 
afterward just as much as before taking stock in the 
firm, as they would be as liable to discharge if in- 
efficient. No contract should ever be made with a 
minor stockholder that would make it impossible to 
dismiss him from a salaried position should he become 
unsatisfactory. Sometimes it happens that a man who 
has been very efficient as a foreman or superintendent. 



2}S PARTNERSHIPS. 

on being admitted as a partner, becomes so puffed up 
with importance, getting what is slangily called a 
** swelled head," that he is no longer valuable to the 
business. There are instances where such men who 
have been advanced for faithful services, abandoned 
their good habits, and took to coming down late in the 
morning, going out during business hours, and generally 
conducting themselves as though they were no longer 
expected to work and earn money for the business. 
The only wise thing to do in such a case is to discharge 
the man; but if an agreement has been made which 
prohibits this, the firm is in a bad fix, with an un- 
profitable load to carry. 

I recall a corporation that made an agreement with 
a most valued head of a department that practically 
bound them to pay him $75 a week during the life of 
that department. Within a few years the man's atti- 
tude toward the firm was wholly changed, and he 
became a general nuisance, coarsely throwing it in the 
face of the principal owners that he was there to do 
as he pleased and draw his $75. Eventually the firm 
sold a very large and prosperous portion of their 
business, much below its real value, for the purpose of 
getting rid of the man whom they had placed in 
charge of that department. Such an experience was a 
most costly lesson, even for a large money-making 
concern, and it is safe to say that the owners never 
again took a minor partner in a way that made it 
impossible to discharge him if his services did not 
continue to be profitable. 

Of course when a head of a department in a 
printery is asked to take stock, and invest his money 
with the concern, virtually becoming a small partner, 



PARTNERSHIPS. 239 

he has a right to demand that his salary be guaranteed 
to him, and his position made permanent, but a clause 
should always be inserted in the agreement permitting 
the company to repurchase his stock and put him out, 
if for any reason such a course is desirable. 

Whether the men interested in a printing office are 
partners in the ordinary sense, or whether they are 
simply stockholders and officers of a company, there 
should be a definite understanding between them as to 
what portion of the business each is to take in charge. 
The supervision should be divided up according to the 
capacity and tastes of the several members of the firm, 
and while all should consult together on important 
matters, yet each one should be allowed to run his 
own department largely in his own way, without 
interference, which breeds hard feelings and upsets the 
friendly relations which are so valuable in a business 
partnership. If each firm member has charge of 
a distinct branch of the business, and monthly reports 
are made to all the members of the progress of 
each department, then each man is put upon his 
mettle to make a good showing, and the one who 
falls behind will feel that he has to keep up the 
profits of his department, if he is to continue to share 
in the profits earned by the other more prosperous 
departments. 

. Regular conference between the members of a firm 
or company is a valuable factor of success. It prevents 
large blunders and insures the taking of the wisest 
course that united wisdom can suggest. A business 
that is not progressive is pretty sure to be retrogressive, 
and when the members get together regularly and 
exchange views, plans for increasing trade are more 



240 PARTNERSHIPS. 

readily developed and executed, thus keeping the con- 
cern in the van of business progress. 

Printers who engage in business in the ordinary 
partnership way should remember that it is necessary to 
exercise mutual forbearance in order to work together 
harmoniously. They cannot always think alike, and 
each may honestly believe that he is the brains of the 
business, whereas the chances are that both contribute 
materially to produce what success is attained, though 
the methods of each may be widely different. There 
are men who work together as harmoniously as the 
parts of a clock, year after year, with a perfect under- 
standing as to what each expects of the other, and 
to mutual satisfaction; but this would be impossible if 
one was always watching the other, and finding fault 
when little things went wrong. Everybody makes 
errors, and things will not always run smoothly under 
the best management, though it may be very easy to 
point out afterwards how mistakes might have been 
prevented. Human hindsight is much better than 
human foresight, and a man cannot always be sure 
that he is doing the best thing until it has been done 
and the results are apparent. Partners must remember, 
that all are fallible and make the same excuses for each 
other that they would make for themselves, when 
results are not quite what they had hoped. 

If you have a good, honest, careful, practical partner, 
who will carry his share of the business load, you are 
in luck, and should be very careful not to separate from 
him, unless positive that it is for the better. While I 
am in general opposed to partnerships, it is because of 
the frailty and uncertainty of human nature, and not 
because a partnership may not be an excellent thing> 



PARTNERSHIPS. 24 1 

where that rare combination is found of two or more 
men working as one intelligent machine, and securing 
the benefit of the best points in each, and the corrective 
judgment of alj, in combination. Such partnerships are 
almost certain money-makers, and it is too bad that, 
they never can last more than' a few years, for, in the 
very nature of things in this transitory world, partners, 
drop out, and the old combination of unity is apt to- 
be lost. 

To sum up the whole matter of partnership in a; 
few words, 1 would say, avoid them when you can; 
give the preferjnce to a corporate company when you 
must ally yourself with others in business; if in the 
partnership lottery you secure one who is a jewel and 
a money-maker cling to him; and never forget that 
partnership agreements should be of the most positive 
character, providing a way to get out of the partner- 
ship, if later it prove undesirable. 



CHAPTER XXVI. 

LEAKAGES. 

No printing business can be made to pay a good 
profit unless a careful watch is kept to prevent leak- 
ages and loss in conducting the details of the work. 
Five or even ten per cent, of margin may disappear 
with no apparent reason, where there is no vigilant eye 
or exact system for maintaining economical production. 
It is astonishing how the little drawbacks to profit 
will creep in and multiply whenever it is not the busi- 
ness of some one to watch for them and keep things 
moving advantageously. Wasted time is probably one 
of the most prolific sources of loss in the printery. It 
may occur anywhere, from the partner who loafs and 
calculates that his money invested is enough to earn 
his salary, to the errand boy who stops around the 
corner to play marbles. When a partner will not earn 
his salary, the other partners should cut down his 
privilege to draw on the funds if they have the power, 
or try to replace him with a live worker if they cannot 
reduce his pay, otherwise they are carrying a load that 
may be disastrous to themselves. If a foreman, super- 
intendent, solicitor, office man, or other one employed 
in a superior position, wastes his time, it is better to 
replace him as quickly as possible, for the chances are 
that such a one will never improve without a severe 
lesson, and is too set in his lazy hallucinations to be 



LEAKAGES. 243 

reformed. If any one in charge of a department or the 
like permits the waste of time of those under him, and 
a first remonstrance fails to remedy the evil, he also 
should be a candidate for dismissal or reduction to the 
ranks. 

I remember a foreman in a large composing-room 
who was very efficient generally, and who would push 
work through most intelligently, and get an enormous 
amount out of the men when there was an abundance of 
work in the office, but who had one weakness that 
made him a failure as a foreman. He could not bear 
to lay off anybody when work was dull. During the 
rush months he did his full duty by the house, but 
during the dull ones he would keep on sometimes 
twice the force that was essential to the work in hand. 
The inevitable result followed — the concern, which was 
a corporation, in a few years spotted the leak, and put 
that foreman on journeywork in another department, 
replacing him by a man who recognized that his busi- 
ness was to make that composing-room pay, and that 
he had no right to sacrifice stockholders' money in 
charity. 

Waste of time on the part of employees in subordi- 
nate positions does not necessarily call for discharge, as 
it is more apt to be ithe result of inferior supervision 
than deliber:;te laziness on the part of the men. It is 
in the nature of most men to take things easily, and 
it is the business of those above them to see that they 
do not waste their time through wantonness, or what 
is more common, some ill-advised method of work. 1 
have seen half a dozen compositors working on a long 
job of tabular matter, and one of the lot doing twice 
as much as the average man, and more than three 



244 LEAKAGES. 

times as much as some others, and nobody keeping" 
any record of these results. It should have been the 
foreman's care to have the fast man instruct the slow 
men on the job as to his methods of handling the 
tables to get results; if they could not grasp them, then 
he should have shifted his men and put in others on 
the tables who knew how or could be taught how to 
do tabular work to advantage. 

In every printing plant it is essential that some one 
have head enough to look after leaks of this sort, and 
see to it that the tirne of all hands is advantageously 
employed. Even in what one may call the best offices 
there is frequently a great waste of time in the various 
departments through some fault of system or general 
oversight. In large offices superintendents should re- 
ceive daily reports embodying full details, and look 
them over regularly for evidence of leakages. For 
further pointers as to avoiding waste of time, see the 
chapter on " Management of Employees."' 

The item of spoilage is one that is often overlooked 
and for which no provision- is made in estimating. It 
is safe to say that no printing office can be conducted 
without some loss from this cause. Where this loss is 
minimized, it is the result of the utmost precautions, 
which precautions in themselves constitute an extra 
expense. There is a multiplicity of causes that lead to 
spoiling a piece of printing, and some of them are so 
small that it is a wonder that they do not occur more 
frequently than they do. The misspelling of a word, 
the dropping out of a letter, a mistake in punctuation 
that changes the sense, the shifting of a guide, acci- 
dental offsetting caused by backing up too soon or 
from piling the work too high, smutting from careless 



LEAKAGES. 245 

handling, uneven color, careless feeding, and numerous 
other errors or accidents familiar to every experienced 
printer, are prolific in causing spoiled work. 

In an office where proofs and revises are passed 
upon in the usual way, a careless pressman may reverse 
a small cut that he has taken out of the form for some 
purpose, or a feeder who knows nothing of type may 
discover a few letters pulling loose, and in the en- 
deavor to make them tight, remove and transpose 
them. These dangers can be avoided only by ordering 
a revise sent to the proofreader every time a form is 
touched. Blunders will be made by even the most 
careful pressman. An electrotype-clamp that does not 
hold fast properly, may work loose and allow a plate 
to slip out of register, so that reams of paper may be 
marred or spoiled before the slip is discovered and 
remedied. 

Then there is the customer who claims that the 
instructions were not as the printer understood them, 
and who refuses to accept the work on this account. 
Any of these losses, while sometimes appearing in- 
significant at the time, may really mean the loss of a 
good customer, and in the aggregate amount to a 
considerable sum. If the printer's business is conducted 
on a close margin — as usually it is — this will naturally 
cut into his profits. An allowance of two per cent. 
for spoilage is not any too much in the job printing 
business. The chances are that it can be kept down 
to this figure only by unceasing care and watchfulness, 
and the rigid enforcement of rules for verifying correc- 
tions and orders. A writer in a newspaper trade 
journal has aptly said, ''No amount of cussing will 
change the date after the edition is worke'd off," and 



246 LEAKAGES. 

this may be paraphrased by the jobber to suit the case 
of the error found in a job on or after delivery to the 
customer. 

The only practical time to stop spoilage is before it 
occurs, and an expense of about one per cent, of extra 
vigilance in looking for blunders before the final 
printing is a good insurance against this form of loss. 

The business of some printers is damaged by 
severe leakage through the machinery they use. The 
exercise of due care and forethought in the handling of 
machinery is essential to avoid loss through breakdowns 
and stoppages. This form of leakage can be stopped 
only by preparing in advance on the principle that 
"a stitch in time saves nine."' A continued squeak or 
unnatural jar or rattle in a press should be attended to 
when it is first observed, and not allowed' to continue 
until serious damage results. Regular examination of 
the machinery and overhauling in dull seasons avoids 
the loss incidental to stopping during periods of rush, 
as is more fully set forth in the chapter on " The 
Pressroom." A waste of power is a common source 
of loss, through inattention to the shafting and belting, 
which are allowed to run hard. An individual motor 
electrical equipment avoids this, and shuts off that 
chance for leakage. 

Waste of paper or card stock is very common in 
the printery, and is often disregarded by the men em- 
ployed through the idea that it will come out of the 
customer, and therefore will not be noticed. It does 
not pay to permit such a notion to become prevalent 
among one's employees. If they are allowed to give 
short count to the customer, the proprietor will have 
no one but himself to blame if they learn to give short 



LEAKAGES. 247 

count to him. The only right way, the only profit- 
able way, is to insist on full count to every customer, 
and allow enough paper for reasonable waste and 
spoilage. This should be accomplished through such a 
system of counting spoiled sheets as will show who 
spoiled them, that workmen may have on them the 
check of knowing that carelessness resulting in waste 
of stock will be known to the employer. 

In cases where stock has to be cut, there is liable 
to be loss through miscalculation as to the best way to 
cut to get the greatest number out of a sheet. The man 
who operates the paper-cutter should have a clear head 
for figures, that there may be no undue leakage here. 
He should be provided, also, with computation tables 
and mechanical helps for easy calculation of how many 
of certain sizes may be got out of a ream of standard 
sizes, thus minimizing such dangers as the cutting up 
of tv/ice the required quantity of stock. It is necessary 
to have a method of protection from the error of cutting 
paper to size when a form is to be run double, or turn 
and cut. 

In every printing office there is necessity for carrying 
more or less paper in stock, and this is liable to depre- 
ciate through dust and dirt, if it is not kept very carefully 
protected. Only by wrapping up in sealed packages 
and by insisting on cleanliness in the paper stock de- 
partment can loss be avoided through the dirtying of 
paper on the edges or on the outer sheets of the quires. 
There must always be more or less loss on paper by 
cording of bundles, broken outsides, etc., also by hand- 
ling for packing after printing. Nothing but continual 
care and watchfulness will keep down the loss on these 
details. 



248 LEAKAGES. 

In some special methods of printing more than ordi- 
nary waste is entailed, and must be allowed for in the 
estimate to avoid loss. Suppose, for instance, that 
one plate is provided from which to print three checks 
on a sheet for a check-book. The three passages through 
the press, and threefold chances for errors in register, 
smutting, etc., will increase the waste materially. A 
colored rule border also entails a lot of waste that the 
printer is apt to forget to figure on, if he is not specially 
familiar with such presswork. 

A common cause of loss in inks is the drying up 
of expensive colors that are allowed to stand exposed 
for a long time. Waste is also entailed by attempts to 
mix colored inks to get arfother color, when the mixer 
has no knowledge of the components of the two or 
more inks employed. The result may be a mixture of 
incompatible substances, and the production of a com- 
pound that will not work on the rollers, spoiling the 
whole lot. It is better to trust to the ink man for 
mixing tints, and pay him for his experience, than to 
experiment with high-priced inks. 

Another source of leakage is through neglect to buy 
closely, and to take advantage of all cash discounts. This 
is treated of fully under the chapter on "Buying." 
The printer who fails to do his purchasing carefully 
and economically leaves himself a hard road to profit. 

One of the best ways to stop leaks is to win the 
interest of employees, so that they will have the dis- 
position to work for the real interests of the house. 
Andrew Carnegie, the multi-millionaire, has been quoted 
as saying, "that no man can acquire wealth without 
being liberal, and giving those about him a chance to 
make something." He had over thirty partners, all so 



LEAKAGES. 



249 



devoted to the interests of his affairs, that he said, "he 
would rather lose every dollar of his capital and retain 
his partners, than lose his partners and retain his 
capital." Get the men who work with you to feel that 
they have an interest in the prosperity of the plant, 
that your success is theirs, and you will have so many 
more watchful eyes to check leaks in your business, 
and save you the profit that has been earned. 

" Little drops of water, little grains 01 sand, 
iVlake the mighty ocean and the pleasant land." 

So little leaks unstopped make great breaches in the 
walls that protect the profits of the printer, and admit 
the flood that may sweep away the whole structure, 
producing ruin that, though inconsequential to the trade 
at large, is to the individual concerned the swamping 
of hope in tragedy. He who allows no leakages in 
his business is a tolerably safe man to bank on as 
likely to make a permanent success of his printery. 



CHAPTER XXVII. 

KEEPING UP WITH THE TIMES. 

No printer can hope to continue in profitable busi- 
ness unless he advances with the times. It matters 
not how honest he may be, how good the work he 
knows how to do, how careful he may be not to 
underestimate, if he yet lacks progressive qualities, his 
establishment will some time arrive at the point of 
stagnation, and be closed up for lack of business. The 
ways that lead to success to-day require to be modified 
to-morrow, and only by keeping an eye open for 
development is it possible to remain in the van of 
business prosperity. 

Take the single matter of printing presses. An 
office may be well stocked with good cylinders, but if 
ten or twelve years roll by, and no additions are made 
to the pressroom 'plant, somebody who has purchased 
later and fiister machinery will gradually get the pay- 
ing work from the establishment that has stood still. 
The march of invention is ever onward, and the 
printers who first avail themselves of improved ma- 
chinery, steal a march on competitors, while those 
who are slowest to buy are placed in a condition of 
retrogradation. 

A man must be apt to recognize when a change is 
coming over trade conditions, and to avail himself of 



KEEPING UP WITH THE TIMES. 25 1 

the natural advantages of such foresight. Take the 
matter of composing-machines, those offices that have 
been most enterprising, and made their purchases 
ahead of the crowd, secured the most work, not only 
in composition, but in very many cases in presswork, 
too; because as a matter of convenience the presswork 
follows the composition to avoid the nuisance of 
carting forms, and to enable easy corrections on the 
presses. 

All of us have seen old houses, both in printing 
and other lines, that have built up a large and success- 
ful trade in one generation lose it in the next, not so 
much from wilful waste or foolishness, as from pure 
lack of ability to alter methods so as to meet new 
conditions. Whenever you meet a man who is per- 
fectly satisfied with his business, and who brags that 
it is where it runs itself, look out for a failure within 
a dozen years. It is only the fellow who is perpetually 
on the lookout for better ways and better means who 
keeps at the top of the heap. While your satisfied 
man is stroking his whiskers in his complaicency, there 
is sure to be some clever competitor working overtime 
to develop schemes for getting ahead, and some, day 
he will find a way, and capture the trade of Mr. 
Complaicency before he realizes that times have changed 
and that he did not change with them. 

Take a lesson from your employees. Once upon a 
time the hand compositor was fat and well fed. He 
did not care much whether he worked to suit or not, 
for he knew that he would not have to ask for em- 
ployment at more than two printing offices without 
securing it. He could afford to be independent, and 
he was. When he saw composing-machines coming 



2^2 KEEPING UP WITH THE TIMES. 

he regarded them with a curious interest, but never 
realized that they would take away his bread and 
butter. The younger and more progressive compositors 
learned the keyboard, and the more conservative type- 
setters were allowed to go. They were supposed to 
get in elsewhere, and. at first it was not noticed that 
there existed any surplus of compositors. As the 
machines proved profitable, however, and began to sell 
with a rush, compositors went out by the wholesale, 
many of them never to earn another dollar in a print- 
ing office. Had these men heeded the signs of the 
times, and learned other branches of the trade, or 
looked up something to fall back upon when the 
change came, their livelihoods would not have been 
taken away. Just so with the employer who heeds 
not the gathering clouds that indicate coming changes, 
that are likely to sweep him away as ruthlessly as the 
hand compositor. Master printers should watch for 
every new thing in machinery or methods, or cir- 
cumstances that tends to effect trade, and go for every 
advantageous thing that shows itself, striving to be 
among the first to make use of it. 

When business is prosperous and the presses are 
humming with paying work and all is serene, do not 
take it for granted that things will always go that way. 
Dull times will come, competition will grow stronger. 
Your best men are liable to leave you, and set up for 
themselves when they see you making money, there- 
fore, do not try to pinch their pay when you are 
prosperous. Make them feel that your success is 
theirs by broad liberality in dealing, and hold them to 
your interests. 

Keep your eyes open for new processes, and investi- 



KEEPING UP WITH THE TIMES. 2^ J 

gate the new things that are offered to the trade. Do 
not be afraid of wasting time on the salesmen who 
approach you with labor-saving devices and machines. 
As a rule they would not be there unless they had a 
good thing to sell, that would earn money or save 
money for some one. You can never be sure in 
advance which salesman may have something that you 
need to push your trade and keep you ahead, or at 
least, abreast of the crowd. Remember that a printing 
business is but one form of buying and selling, and 
that you should give as careful attention to the buying 
as the selling end. Do not shut yourself up and be 
so exclusive that a salesman cannot get at you. When 
you have a large plant be as easy of approach as when 
youl^had a small one. Sometimes you can get valuable 
tips from salesmen, and if you shut yourself off from 
them, so that they can only get at you second-hand, 
you only invite them to bribe your employees in order 
to get their goods into your place. Do not be the 
means of making such conditions, but rather invite 
everybody about you to be honest, by keeping tempta- 
tion out of the way. 

Read the trade papers, the advertisements, and even 
the circulars that come into your mail as much as you 
can. These are all helps towards keeping up with the 
times. Go to other cities, and visit, and talk with the 
men who run the successful printeries there. Most of 
them are glad of the opportunity to swap experiences, 
and tell of what they are doing. By telling them of 
your methods of pushing business, you can draw them 
out and learn their ways, and often profit by their 
experiences. 

While the endeavor of this book is to lay down in 



254 KEEPING UP WITH THE TIMES. 

a general way the principles of action that should 
govern the conducting of a printery so that a profit 
may be reaped, yet it must be recognized that this can 
be done only in a general way, and that unless the 
reader has the patience and intelligence to follow and 
apply the rules that lead to success, he will not win 
the prosperity he seeks. The underlying principles of 
success are probably the same in all lines of business, but 
the application of them is different in the various avoca- 
tions and in the individuals. Some men win business 
prosperity by methods apparently almost opposite 
to those adopted by others who succeed equally. As 
a rule, those men who have a grasp of large things, 
and who view business problems in a broad way, 
make the most money in the long run. They can hire 
others to look after the detail. The man who excels 
in working out details is apt to lose the ability to look 
at things in a comprehensive manner, and often goes 
on pottering with minutiae when some large thing in 
his business demands all his energies. These remarks 
are intruded here to suggest to the mind of the reader 
that to profit by this book, he must take it as a whole, 
and not undertake to guide his business by any one 
portion or detail of its lessons. Just because things 
change and develop, he must he on the alert to keep 
pace with these changes, and to understand that while 
the various chapters herein contained are each believed 
to embody sound advice from the point of view in 
which written, yet, that the march of time may lead to 
larger and somewhat different conclusions in some 
matters, and that he must keep his mind open to 
receive more and newer ideas as the world progresses 
and the industry changes. 



KEEPING UP WITH THE TIMES. 255 

We live in an age when mechanical and inventive 
progress has begun to develop so fast that commercial 
conditions are made to change with a rapidity unknown 
in earlier periods. It appears probable that changes of 
this sort will become more rapid in occurrence as time 
goes on, and that the man who runs a printery or any 
other business will have to make his money out of it 
in ten years, and then upset the whole situation and 
go at It again in a new way, with a new plant, if he 
desires to make more. 

We have no assurance that printing will always be 
done from type, or on presses. Already we see many 
kinds of printing or reproductions accomplished in 
other ways. We can recognize that printing, in the 
broad sense of reproducing pictures and signs that 
represent language, must continue to exist as long as 
human intelligence remains as we know it; but we 
have no assurance that the methods of producing it, or 
of advertising, or of generally conducting business, are 
permanent. They may be simply an evolution. In 
these days evolutions sometimes transpire with amazing 
quickness. The wise printer will be ever ready, and 
when he sees signs of a change of methods, will be 
prepared for them. 

It is not without a sense of regret that I dip my 
pen in the ink for nearly the last time in the prepara- 
tion of this book. The task has been a congenial one, 
and as it has led me through the various details of 
development; of a printery, I have inwardly sympathized 
with the beginners who had to toil up the hill of 
business properity, in which are so many pitfalls, for 
which they might be ill prepared. If the methods and 
principles which helped me along the road — and which 



256 KEEPING UP WITH THE TIMES. 

I have been able to gather as helping other printers 
who have made much more conspicuous successes than 
myself— if the gathering together of these in this book 
shall assist even a few hard working young master 
printers to the goal of success, I shall be more than 
repaid. 

I love the printing trade. A choice bit of printing 
is a delight to my eye; and the click of the types and 
the whirr of presses is music to my ears. Though my 
time has been given of late years mainly in the busi- 
ness office, and my energies directed to printing for a 
profit, yet I have never wavered in my regard for the 
art for its own sake. The true printer is like the true 
artist — wedded to his craft. It is because many are so 
firmly bound to the art side that the business side is 
so often forgotten, and that this book is needed to 
remind us that it is a duty to learn how to make 
money in the business quite as much as to study the 
nice points that go to the making of a perfect piece of 
printing. 



CHAPTER XXVIII. 

SUGGESTIONS FROM OTHERS, 



THEODORE L. DE VINNE. 

THE DE VINNE PRESS. 

"How to succeed in the printing business," is a 
conundrum of the first class. We all know of men 
who have been able, honest, frugal, hard-working, and 
have not succeeded. Why they failed is not easy to 
explain. Accident and circumstance have much to do 
with success or failure, but there are personal qualities 
which seem to me necessary to success. 

First of all, in my belief, is an understanding of the 
business. The proprietor of a printing house who has 
not learned the trade, who has not spent many years 
in composing-room or pressroom, does business as a 
manager under great disabilities. Nor is it enough to 
know how to set type or work a press. The good 
compositor or pressman cannot be fairly qualified to 
manage a business on his own account unless he has a 
knowledge of all the expenses of a printing house, which 
are always greater than is supposed. This knowledge 
can be had only by access to the account books of a well 
managed business. It is possible for the man who has. 



258 SUGGESTIONS FROM OTHERS. 

had no education as a printer, or for the journeyman 
who has never examined account books, to succeed, 
but the chances are ten to one against him. He has 
to depend upon information as to the probable perform- 
ance of men and presses, which is usually overrated; and 
as to the unavoidable expenses of wear and waste 
which are grossly underrated. The men who furnish 
this untrustworthy information, usually his own em- 
ployees, are innocent of any intent to deceive. They 
don't know how much it costs to do work, for this 
knowledge can be had only from a study of account 
books. They guess, and believe in their own guesses, 
but it is the unpractical proprietor who suffers from 
their mistaken guesses. Large corporations owned or 
controlled by unpractical men are the ones who suffer 
most severely from the faulty estimates of employees. 
Printing has been done, and is now being done, at from 
ten to twenty per cent, below its actual cost, while 
the owner of the plant is led to believe that he is 
making a good profit. In a business so managed the 
loss is not at once apparent. It takes many years to 
accomplish failure, but failure is sure to come. 

A love for printing is equally important. The man 
who frets over the drudgery of details, who turns over 
to his employees work which he should do personally, 
who does not like to handle types or presses, or 
even to study their peculiarities, who wants to be an 
employer in a lordly and magnificent way, is sure to 
find sooner or later that the faulty estimates of his 
employees have assumed alarming proportions. There 
are proprietors who, having a fairly equipped printing 
house, and capital and credit, think that the business 
will take care of itself. Having wound up the clock, 



SUGGESTIONS FROM OTHERS. 2^9 

they propose to sit down and see it run. There is no 
sadder mistake. No printing house will support its 
owner unless he does his best to support it. The 
complex machinery of his business (for it is complex 
when one considers that customers and workmen, 
banks and book-keeping, types, presses and material 
require equal attention), cannot be made automatic. To 
keep it in order often calls for constant oversight and 
frequent drudgery. It is not pleasant, metaphorically 
speaking, to put on overalls and get inside this 
complexity, with a screw wrench in one hand and an 
oil can in the other, tightening here and oiling there; 
but this is work that must be done, and no one should 
do it better than the proprietor. The drudgery is 
endurable to one who loves his trade. The printer 
who has his heart in his trade will take more pleasure 
in the ownership of a well-equipped printing house, 
and in the planning and making of fine jobs or books, 
than he would in the possession of fine horses or 
houses. The man who loves work for the work's 
sake may not always succeed, but he deserves success, 
and will get it if not prevented by misfortune or want 
of prudence. 

The path of a novice in printing is full of pitfalls. 
I can mention but a few. 

One is the giving of credit to irresponsible persons. 
There is no trade so frequently "worked " by visionary 
or dishonest customers. 

Another is the desire to do more work than is 
practicable or economical within a fixed period. Work 
by night is usually a loss, even at high rates. 

The employment of solicitors or drummers on com- 
mission to bring work in the house, is rarely ever a 



26o SUGGESTIONS FROM OTHERS. 

success. One can buy gold too dear, and can get an 
increase of business at too great a cost. In the long 
run, the drummer becomes the master and not the 
servant. 

The retaliatory spirit which prompts one to "get 
even" with a rival who has taken your work at a lower 
price is to be avoided. To take his work out of spite 
at losing rates does not benefit the taker. The sharp 
customer profits by this unwise rivalry. He makes and 
you lose. 

The competition of unfair houses, especially of 
houses chartered to do religious work, and largely 
benefited by the contributions of the devout — houses 
misled i-n estimates by salaried employees — is a distinct 
misfortune. 

It is a bitter experience to have attached custom 
leave you for an unfair rival, but it is an experience 
that every printer, large or small, has to submit to. 
In prize fighting, it is not the man who strikes the 
hardest blows who always wins the fight. It is the 
man who can "stand punishment" who oftenest wins. 
The young printer must prepare himself to accept unfair 
competition and hard blows without weakening. If he 
does his work as well as he can, and earns a reputation 
for fair dealing and ability he too will win. It takes 
time, but he will win. 



CARL SCHRAUBSTADTER. 

SECRETARY AND MANAGER INLAND TYPE FOUNDRY. 

The greatest curse of the printing trade is the fact 
that too many people go into it improperly equipped, 
not as far as plant is concerned, but in respect to 



SUGGESTIONS FROM OTHERS. 26 1 

capital and experience. The four requisites for success 
in any trade are sufficient capital, experience, energy 
and ability. No matter how much of the last two the 
man may possess, without the other requisites he is 
almost certain to make a failure. Records of failures in 
the United States show that more people fail from 
insufficient capital than from any other cause, and this 
result may be largely traced to lack of experience. 
Some of the printers' supply and paper houses are 
largely responsible for this condition of affairs. They 
are so anxious to make sales that they will furnish a 
large proportion of the capital needed to embark in 
the business. As a consequence, the printer is handi- 
capped from the start and cannot successfully compete 
with his more prosperous brethren. Almost invariably 
when a concern starts, it not only puts all its available 
cash into its plant, so as to cripple it for lack of 
working capital, but goes into debt for some of its 
material, agreeing to pay a certain sum per month to 
the supply house, which to the detriment of the trade 
at large, encourages such business. As a result, the 
concern is always hard up, and in order to get money 
to meet its payments when business is dull, cuts the 
prices below a living profit and gets worse into the 
mire. I cannot too strongly decry the lack of business 
experience in the average printer and the injury it is 
working to the trade at large. We all know of many 
printing offices, the managers o\' which have no 
practical knowledge of composition or presswork, and 
yet who have made a success of their institutions. On 
the other hand, we know a far greater number of 
proprietors who have thoroughly mastered the mechan- 
ical part of their trade, yet who are seriously handicapped 



262 SUGGESTIONS FROM OTHERS. 

because they have no business experience. The average 
master printer has graduated from the case, invested 
his little savings in a plant, and started without any 
knowledge of business whatsoever. If he has prospered 
and succeeded, it is in spite of this fact and not on 
account of it. To successfully manage a business, a man 
should have had experience in passing on credits, in 
the intricacies of banking and financing, in selecting, 
management and training of office employees, in secur- 
ing work, in buying and advertising to advantage. 
In almost every other industry attention is paid to 
these points, and the man who starts in business 
for himself understands most of them through the 
experience of others. Unfortunately, this is not true of 
the printing trade. 

The printer too frequently deceives himself as to 
the profits of the business. The average workman 
thinks that his work costs him little beyond paper, 
composition, presswork and ink. He does not figure 
out his costs as accurately as he should, he does not 
keep his records as carefully as they should be kept, 
nor, in figuring on work carefully does he study the 
costs of previous jobs in order to arrive at the proper 
charges he should make. He is apt to take his cus- 
tomer's word for the price he has paid for similar jobs 
and base his ovv^n thereon. Often the data thus 
furnished are incorrect, and in many cases, with exist- 
ing facilities he cannot take the work at prices actually 
offered by other concerns without incurring a loss. 
Unless he has the courage to refuse an order which 
will not render him a profit, at the best he will make 
only a precarious existence. Very few printers charge 
off a proper amount for wear and tear, and as a conse- 



SUGGESTIONS FROM OTHERS. 26} 

quence have not sufficient money to invest in keeping 
an office up to date. Running with worn out type 
and antiquated machinery, they can never hope to 
compete with better concerns. No manufacturing in- 
dustry can stand still. It must either go forward or 
retrograde, and the large number of failures in the 
printing business is mostly due to this cause. 

Despite such drawbacks, printing is by no means 
an unprofitable business. Although in many localities 
it is overcrowded, there is plenty of room on top; 
and every day we see and hear of concerns that have 
started up and are making money, and rapidly in- 
creasing in size. A very frequent cause of failure, 
however, is too rapid growth. The printer who is 
successful with a few platen presses is persuaded by a 
cylinder press agent to purchase a large press. Usually 
he has barely sufficient capital to swing his old trade. 
He pays out as a cash payment all his available money 
and does not stop to consider that with an increased 
business he will have to have more ready money to 
purchase stock, labor and power, and to carry his 
customers. I cannot too strongly recommend conserva- 
tism in this detail. 

1 consider that the best method for a printer to 
assure himself of success is to pick out a specialty. 
The most successful printers in a small way are those 
who carefully look over the field and select some 
particular branch to which they devote their entire 
energy. No one can do all classes of work to equal 
advantage. Very often you hear a printer complaining 
of the price at which a certain job of work wi;s taken 
when the printer who accepted it may have exceptional 
facilities for turning it out cheaply and still make a 



264 SUGGESTIONS FROM OTHERS. 

good profit. There are many branches of trade which 
can be worked up so as to produce ample work at 
remunerative prices. 

Printer's advertising is understood by but a few 
concerns, and those few are uniformly successful. No 
trade offers such opportunities as this. The printer is 
the only one who can get his advertising at cost price, 
but usually it is spasmodically and poorly done. Many 
printers do not advertise at all and others confine 
themselves to hackneyed forms of blotters and poorly 
conceived and executed circulars. In order to be 
successful, it must be done carefully and systematically. 
It is useless to send printed matter to those who are 
not likely to be customers, and it is equally useless to 
send out advertisments which are not likely to attract 
attention or bring in an order. 



WM. J. BERKOWITZ. 

On the first of June, 1899, our firm quit Job Printing 
and continued one branch of our business exclusively, 
viz: — the making and printing of envelopes. We decided 
about the first of January to sell out our job printing plant 
and began a series of advertisements looking to that 
end. Now we want to recite our experience that in 
itself may prove of great value to the hard working 
enthusiast that is wearing out his life and his machinery 
at the same time for the benefit of the man who buys 
printing. 

We were doing a job printing business of $65,000 
a year. We could find no buyer for a printing busi- 
ness. There is no agency (we could not find any) that 
made a business of selling printing offices. A number 



SUGGESTIONS FROM OTHERS. 265 

make it a business to sell newspapers. The man who 
is looking for an old established printing office is the 
man who has no money to buy new, up-to-date, 
modern machinery, and so you cannot afford to sell 
out. or give away, your plant to an irresponsible man 
without means. Men who do not understand the 
printing business will not venture into it, and men 
who do, who have been in the business for years, have 
no money to move and buy other plants. They have 
not accumulated anything. So we sold our plant 
piecemeal and at prices "under the hammer." 

So the money you put into increasing your plant 
must never be figured as so much profit. Depreciation 
of plant and interest on investment are the opposing 
forces that wipe away every dollar of profit at the 
prices printing is done by the average printer. 

in the face of the advance in paper and supplies the 
price of printing keeps going down. The first step, 
therefore, in the solution of this territic problem is, get a 
legitimate price for work, a price that carries a margin 
with it without regard to the price cutter, or the man 
who is looking for " Fillers." Be independent of these. 
Lay down a principle in business "Your money's worth," 
and give it; but let us be honest to ourselves and add 
this personal profit "A proper return for time, capital, 
energy and brain," and no man will deny you this 
right. 

I heard a prominent newspaper man say to one of 
our prosperous merchants, "The job printing business 
is the hardest and the meanest business that a man can 
embark in. The risk entailed and the small margin of 
profit, if any, and the loss on plant leaves the printer 
absolutely nothing." 



266 SUGGESTIONS FROM OTHERS. 

No business has more details, demands more careful 
watching, entails more strain on the nerves, and requires 
more brainwork, and above all, pays so little. I wish 
every printer would make a text book of these chapters 
from the pen of Paul Nathan and study every page 
by heart. The broad common sense contained therein, 
backed up by facts and a few figures are convincing 
truths against the ruinous methods practiced by the 
average printer in every city in the United States. 

J. CLYDE OSWALD. 

The chapters from your book, " How to Make 
Money in the Printing Business," have been received 
and 1 have been much interested in their perusal. In 
undertaking to instruct printers how to make money 
you have undertaken a big task, not so much because it 
is difficult to devise a plan to accomplish that desirable 
end, but because although the way be shown, the 
average employing printer seems reluctant to follow it. 

Printers do make money. Look about you and the 
fact becomes at once apparent, for it is a fact that all 
the large establishments had small beginnings, and in 
nearly every case the money used to get the machinery 
and materials in these establishments together was 
made right in the business. 

No fault is to be found with a printer on the 
ground that he does not make money, but he is to be 
blamed because he does not keep it. Look at the 
well-known printers in New York that we know, 
many of whom have been in business twenty years or 
more, that could not raise $20,000 in cash no matter 
how hard they might try; yet each will agree, 1 think. 



SUGGESTIONS FROM OTHERS. 267 

rhat he could have taken one or two thousands of 
dollars out of his business annually without much 
difficulty. Instead, however, they put the money, 
usually before it is made, in more machinery and 
materials, constantly adding to the plant, and never 
knowing what it means to be out of debt. A thousand 
dollars in the bank is so much money to the good 
that will continually increase; a thousand dollars in- 
vested in a machine becomes $750 or less as soon as 
the machine is set up, and it goes on dwindling year 
after year. I do not advocate that a printer should not 
add to his plant — far from that; what I do say is 
that instead of reaching out for all the work in sight 
he should first get a better price for what he is doing; 
second, get something more than a living out of his 
business, and third, buy machines when he has the 
money to pay for them. 

You will see that I have a personal interest in 
desiring an improvement in the printing business when 
I tell you that I receive letters regularly from good- 
sized printing offices thanking me for sending them 
sample copies of The American Printer and Bookmaker, 
and explaining that they do not subscribe because they 
cannot afford to pay the two dollars a year required. 
When a man makes an excuse that does not need to 
be made it is usually safe to believe him. 

I hope, therefore, that you will be successful in 
showing printers how to make enough money to 
enable them to possess an occasional two dollar bill 
that they can consider all their own and to spend as 
they please. 



268 SUGGESTIONS FROM OTHERS. 



C S. MOREHOUSE. 

I HAVE read carefully your advanced chapters in 
"Hovj to Make Money in the Printing Business" — those 
on "Estimating," "Acquiring Money," " Price Cutting," 
and "Competitors." I thoroughly endorse all you have 
written. The rules you have formulated are very closely 
on the lines I have endeavored to follow in a business 
life of fifty years. 

The printer who will always ask a fair price for his 
work, striving to do creditable work, giving an honest 
dollar's worth of service for each dollar received, must 
succeed. The customer who wishes prices cut for his 
benefit, should always be induced to pass on. If 
prices are cut for one man, they will be for another, and 
a rat office is the result. The printer Who is dishonest 
to himself by giving away his time, and the time of 
his hands, and sells his stock for cost, will soon come 
to grief. He is on a down hill grade. 

Your book must be a valuable aid to the young 
beginner — if he is a reading man, and is willing to try 
and learn from the experience of those longer in the 
trade, who have met success. One serious trouble 
with young printers — and for that matter, many older 
ones— is that they will not read up. They ignore the 
company of other printers. They will not join "The 
Typotheta^." They do not read its "Annual Reports." 
They do not read the trade journals. They do not care^ 
for such books as you and Mr. DeVinne and others 
have written for their instruction. They are selfish, and 
imagine every other printer must be selfish, hence they 
will not associate with them, not realizing they are the 



SUGGESTIONS FROM OTHERS. 269 

only ones who must come to grief. Every successful, 
up-to-date master printer is the friend of every new 
beginner, and is glad to lend them a helping hand and 
a kind word of encouragement. 

I am sure "The master printers who realize that 
there is a practical side to the printing art, and who 
desire to know the surest methods of making profits," 
will certainly welcome your coming book with joy. 



CHAS. H. COCHRANE. 

The way to make money in the printing business is 
to collect considerably more for your work than it costs 
to turn it out. The reason why so many printers do 
not do this seems to me to be that they are deluded 
as to the cost of production. No man would buy coal 
at $4 a ton, handle it at an expense of $i, and sell it 
at $5 and think that he was making money; but that 
is about the way a great deal of the production of 
printing is managed. 

When every job printer can be brought to realize 
that the labor is only a small item of the total cost in 
doing a job printing business, and very frequently ex- 
ceeded by the aggregate of miscellaneous small expenses 
on which he does not figure at all, there will be less 
doing of work at or below cost. Let every master 
printer remember that he has to make his own business 
and profits, and that if Hustle & Bust are chopping 
prices that is no reason why he should do a single job 
at a rate that does not yield a fair profit. 

I think the job printing business a fairly good busi- 
ness for the man who is a business man, but it may 
be a very poor business for the man who is only a 



270 SUGGESTIONS FROM OTHERS. 

good printer. Let the printer once definitely understand 
that he must become a business man, and that being 
a business man is as much of a trade as being a printer, 
and that it is more necessary to the making of a profit*, 
and there will be fewer failures in the printing business. 

There is nothing in figuring on competitive work if 
it is to go to the lowest bidder, since desirable jobs 
seldom do go to the lowest bidder, because those 
who give them out are afraid that the work will not be 
done satisfactorily. It is usually a medium figure by a 
good house that catches a large job on which a number 
have estimated. The naming of a good price on a job 
is almost sure to make the customer think that it will 
be well done, and he wants that house to do the job. 
Often he will simply take the figures of the lower 
bidders and go to the highest and use the figures to 
bear the price all he can, but at the same time with the 
intention of leaving the job with this high-priced (i. e. 
good) printer. 

When we look among the master printers of our 
acquaintance and note that those who are doing the 
most business are also the ones who receive the highest 
prices for their work, we should profit by the lesson. 
The printer who once gets this thoroughly into his 
head has reached a broad stepping-stone on the up- 
ward path to success. 

HENRY L. BULLEN. 

MANAGER F. WESEL MANUFACTURING CO. 

The question "How to Operate a Printing Office 
Profitably.^" will be asked so long as printing is called 
for, and will always remain unanswered except to 



SUGGESTIONS FROM OTHERS. 2'] I 

those who answer it for themselves. Success in print- 
ing business, and in other businesses, is an art that 
cannot be taught academically — it rests on capacity, 
courage. and good judgment inherent in proprietor and 
manager. Find your man, success follows. Profits are 
obtained by a knowledge of cost; the courage which 
adds sufficient profit to cost, based on well defined 
rules and percentages; and good judgment in applying 
the rules and percentages. To satisfy the customer is 
the objective. The customer demands good value, and 
profit is as much a part of value as the actual cost of 
material and labor. The customer expects to pay the 
profit, but likes the profit-pill sugar-coated. He who 
has the art of sugar-coating that pill and at the same 
time keeps the pill big enough is on the road to 
success. How to do it } Tis a prescription unwritten 
— a gift of the Gods. Would that all printers were 
successful; but, if this be not granted, would that those 
who do not make profits could cease to ascribe their 
losses to the sins of their competitors. You can no 
more teach a printer to succeed in business than you 
can teach a salesman to sell successfully, or a lawyer 
to plead convincingly; nevertheless, as experience is 
neccessary to the complete development of the three 
inherent business virtues of a business man, the educa- 
tional propaganda is necessary and valuable, especially 
when it is so practical and convincing as in the pages 
of your book. Such public-spirited labors deserve 
applause, and the beneficial results are far reaching. 
Your efforts to uphold the dignity of our important 
industry, and to secure to the printer his just profits, 
have placed the whole fraternity under obligations to 
you. 



272 SUGGESTIONS FROM OTHERS. 

NATHAN BILLSTEIN. 

THE FRIEDENWALD COMPANY, BALTIMORE, MD. 

My experience in the printing business, which 
began in the smallest way, has taught me that the 
most important thing for a man to do, if he intends to 
make money in it, is to adopt certain definite aims and 
methods of accomplishing them, then adhere to these 
absolutely; a periodical review of results should be made 
and methods should be modified and improved as the 
individual conditions and experience may require. 

Looking backward, it is now perfectly plain to me 
that often my prices were made too low only because 
the real cost was not known, when adequate prices 
could have been had for the asking. On the other 
hand, my prices naturally were sometimes too high, 
and business was lost which would have been very 
profitable and which would have been the beginnings 
of trade which has since grown to proportions of 
magnitude in the hands of others. 

Such success as I have achieved has been gained 
through the following things: 

1. Doing good work and obtaining the 
confidence of my customers by the interest 
shown in the execution of their orders, and 
close attention to business. 

2. Charging the same prices when esti- 
mates were not asked for as when they were. 

3. Building up gradually a trade which 
gave me the bulk of my orders without com- 
petition. 



SUGGESTIONS FROM OTHERS. 273 

4. Having my product carefully packed, so 
that it reached my customers in convenient 
form and in good order. 

5. Avoiding "fillers" and cutting at the 
trade of other printers. 

6. Placing myself in the way of getting 
orders for new work. 

The fact that the business Of printing is and 
must be largely confined to locality, and the fact that 
the concerns offering the lowest prices fail to monopo- 
lize the business, point conclusively to the truth that 
other things than the lowest prices secure the most and 
the best of the orders. 

Our patron saint is credited with the saying "Take 
care of the pennies and the dollars will take care of 
themselves; " adapting the phrase I might say, "take care 
of the profit on each job and the business will take 
care of itself. ' 



JNO. W. CAMPSIE. 

MANAGER PRINTING DEPARTMENT, EVENING WISCONSIN CO. 

This is a subject that can only be handled intelli- 
gently by those who have realized this longed-for result 
in the conduct of their own business. 

I am pleased to state that we have succeeded in 
obtaining very satisfactory returns in the way of profit, 
and believe that anyone can accomplish the same 
result if they will pursue the proper course. 

First : See to it that you have the best machinery 
you can secure that is adapted to the class of work 



274 SUGGESTIONS FROM OTHERS. 

you do, and do not have any more presses than you 
actually require to handle the work. 

Second : Secure the best pressmen you can obtain, 
even if you have to pay them an advance price over 
the regular scale, and provide a well-lighted and con- 
veniently arranged press room for them. 

Third: Equip your composing-room with a care- 
fully selected stock of type, borders, labor-saving rule, 
metal furniture, etc., but be careful to purchase the type 
in series — good, full cases to each sized letter, and don't 
get too large a variety of type. Rather get larger fonts 
of the faces that can be kept in constant use, and 
replace it when worn out with new. Don't get fonts 
that are so nearly similar that the customer doesn't 
know the difference. Have a sufficient number of 
chases and quoins and metal furniture so time will not 
be lost in unlocking forms. 

Fourth : Keep a careful record of all work done in 
the various departments, and ascertain the exact cost 
of hand composition, presswork, linotype work, etc. 
Don't take anyone's word for it, but investigate for your- 
self. Remember that on every job you do there are 
many items of expense that enter into it aside from those 
that appear on the surface that must be included in an 
expense account to be added to the other costs. Find 
out what your expense is by taking all the items of 
''unproductive labor," for one year, such as foremen, 
superintendent, stockmen, proof readers, copy holders, 
etc., rent, fuel, light, insurance, interest on investment, 
depreciation, repairs, commission, telephones, telegrams, 
travelling expenses, etc., etc., and dividing it by the 
amount of the business done during the same period, 
this will represent a certain percentage (not less than 



SUGGESTIONS FROM OTHERS. 2"]^ 

twenty-five) which is an actual cost, and must be added 
to costs before adding any profits. 

Fifth : Never allow an estimate of any consequence 
to go out without proving it. Figure the paper both 
ways. That is, if you have i,ooo copies of a 128 page 
catalogue size 6x9, first figure that you can get 32 
pages to the sheet, or four sheets to the catalogue, 
representing 4,000 sheets or eight reams. Then figure 
that each form will require 500 sheets work and turn, 
or eight forms, requiring 4,000 sheets or eight reams — 
thus proving that your paper is correct. When there 
are solid cut forms, allow for the amount of ink used, 
and don't be afraid to consult your pressmen as to the 
probable amount to be used, and see if their estimate 
is in keeping with your own. 

Sixth : Take a personal interest in all work en- 
trusted to your care and impress the customer with the 
fact that you are giving him your best efforts, and the 
benefit of your skill and experience. Make your work 
of a higher grade and possess more originality and 
character than your competitor's, and he will soon 
realize that your work creates business for him — brings 
about the results he sought to obtain. He will have 
confidence in you, and will be willing you should make 
a fair profit for your skill and ability. 

Seventh: Meet all your obligations promptly. Have 
a certain date on which to pay all bills, and take ad- 
vantage of discounts wherever possible. Keep your 
business office clean and attractive, and have samples 
of your work neatly framed and hung about the walls. 
See that clerks are courteous and efficient and are 
cleanly in their attire. Use tact and judgment \\i 
handling your customers and be fair and honest with 



276 SUGGESTIONS FROM OTHERS. 

all your competitors, never allowing yourself to speak 
illy of them. 

These are a few of the elements that will tend to 
make a success of the printing business, and give the 
employer a fair return on the money he has invested. 
But it also requires constant personal supervision, and 
everlasting vigilance to cut off all leakages. 



SIGMUND ULLMAN. 

SIGMUND ULLMAN CO., INK MAKERS. 

^'JVater, water, everywhere and not a drop to drink." 

Prosperity everywhere, but none for the printer. 
This is the complaint 1 have heard at every meeting of 
the N. Y. Typothetae 1 have attended, and at the con- 
vention in New Haven. What can be done to improve 
the condition of the printing trade — is the question 
which has been argued for years. 1 have been requested 
by Mr. Paul Nathan, the author of this book, to render 
my opinion on the subject. 

It appears to me that the printing business is poorest 
in the larger and largest cities of the United States, 
and many causes combine to make it so. One of the 
principal causes is the fact that the majority of printers 
are not business men. They do not realize that printing 
to-day, or at least 95 per cent, of it, is a manufacture, 
and not an art. To-day it is an art to manufacture the 
best printing at the lowest price. The manufacturer 
of to-day must in the first place have up-to-date 
machinery, and furthermore, must be an expert in the 
purchase of all materials he requires. He must be fully 
posted as to the market value of everything he buys. 



SUGGESTIONS FROM OTHERS. 277 

Nine-tenths of al; printers know only what they pay 
for their materials, but they do not know what they 
could be bought at. They leave this most important 
question in the hands of subordinates, it being simply 
a question of luck whether or not these trusted buyers 
are dishonest, ignorant or perhaps both. 

In a great number of printing establishments not 
a pound of ink will be used, unless some one is paid 
for using it. When he is paid for using ink, he will 
gradually get paid for everything admitted into that 
establishment, from a web press down to the latest 
novelty. It is well-known that the laboring classes 
have always strenuously opposed all inventions tending 
to reduce cost of production. The inventor of the 
steam engine encountered the same opposition as did 
the inventor of the Linotype. When a buyer is paid 
for using a certain firm's goods he considers it his duty 
to keep out everybody else's. No printer can do a 
competing business to-day unless he has the ability to 
buy all his materials at the lowest prices at which 
they can be bought. The printers of the large cities 
are simply being robbed every day. 

-A large quantity of printing which was formerly done 
in large cities now goes to such printers in smaller cities 
where the proprietors have time to attend to their 
business. The printers in New York have not got 
time to attend to their business. They are always in a 
hurry. They will spend a half-day making an estimate 
for a customer for a twenty-dollar job, but when a 
salesman comes to see them, who could probably save 
them thousands of dollars per year and put them in a 
position to better compete, he will not be received. 

One of the greatest bug-bears for a printer is the 



278 SUGGESTIONS FROM OTHERS. 

estimate ; and it is so, because when an estimate is 
demanded the printer imagines ' that he has got to 
make the lowest price, and if he does he will get the 
job. If he makes a low estimate and does not get the 
job he thinks some one else gave a lower estimate, 
and the next chance he gets to estimate on that job 
he will estimate still lower. 1 think this is a great 
mistake. Most customers who ask for an estimate, 
ask for it because they have not the slightest idea what 
the job is worth, and want to find out ; and 1 further- 
more think that the printer who gives the lowest 
estimate will not get the job, because it is too low, 
and the customer is afraid the job will not be properly 
done. In some cases the customer has a certain printer 
in view to whom he is going to give this job, and 
estimates of other printers are simply used to keep the 
favorite printer within certain limits, and he in most 
cases will get the job anyway, and probably at a 
much higher price than the lowest estimate. I would 
suggest that employing printers unite and agree to 
make a charge of $5 or $10 for giving an estimate. 
Why should a printer spend sometimes days of time 
and go to expense to establish the fact for some 
customer of some other printer that he is paying too 
much for his work. If it is not worth $5 or $10 to a 
customer to get an estimate he ought not to ask for it. 
There may be some other causes working towards 
the entire ruin of the printing business of New York 
and other large cities, but the ones 1 have described 
strike me as being the principal ones. 



CHAPTER XXIX. 

THE RELATION OF PAPER-FEEDING MACHINES TO 
PROFIT IN THE PRESSROOM. 

In no branch of the printer's craft has there been 
greater advancement during recent years than in the 
pressroom. Not only has the quality of printing im- 
proved, but the speed and economy of production has 
made such strides that in 1900 it is actually less costly 
to do fine printing than it was to do common press- 
work in 1880. A number of causes have combined to 
produce this result. The tendency to build larger and 
heavier cylinder printing presses has steadily increased, 
as with each gain in size of machine the printer has 
found that he could produce presswork more economi- 
cally, and with increased heaviness of machines and 
improved mechanical movements in the presses he has 
secured greater and greater speeds, until now it is not 
more difficult to drive a 44x65 cylinder press weighing 
a dozen tons at a speed of 1,500 to 2,000 impressions 
an hour, than it used to be to drive a pony cylinder of 
one and a half tons at that speed. 

The press-builders, who made these things possible 
for the printer, went even further than present demands, 
for they built cylinders that would run faster than men 
could be found to feed them accurately. There are plenty 
of hand feeders who will tell you that they can feed 
sheets at from 1,500 to 2,000 an hour, but when they 
come to be tested it turns out that they require to have 



28o PAPER-FEEDING MACHINES. 

a small sheet, and not too much care for -register, also 
that they trip the impression frequently, and require 
stoppages for rest, so that there is no particular gain in 
belting the cylinders up to those speeds. On large sheets 
requiring good register, a thousand perfect sheets an hour 
is all that can be expected of good hand feeders, even 
though the presses are belted at 1,300 to 1,500 an hour; 
and the average product is certainly below rather than 
above the thousand mark. The ability of high-class 
two-revolution presses to maintain enduring speeds of 
1,600 to 2,000 an hour in the larger sizes, and 2,000 to 
3,000 in the smaller sizes, was the opportunity of the 
automatic paper-feeder. 

The "Economic" paper-feeding machine, which had 
a long and successful record in supplying paper to ruling 
machines and folding machines, was tested on printing 
presses some years since, and found to be practical, 
despite the more difficult character of the paper handled. 
It was gradually developed and improved until its opera- 
tion was so certain and automatic on all grades of paper 
that it came to be accepted by many of the larger printers 
of the country, who have added more and more feeding 
machines to their plants, until now it is a common sight 
to see large pressrooms where every cylinder press has 
its automatic feeder attached. 

Feeding machines have been regarded by some as 
designed simply to save the time and labor of a man 
feeder. They do a great deal more than that; in fact 
that is only a small part of the economy which they 
produce. It has been demonstrated by progressive 
printers, who have put in a few "Economic" feeding 
machines as a test, that the increase in production for 
the presses is the greatest advantage, amounting to 



PAPER-FEEDING MACHINES. 



281 



much more than the saving of the hand feeder's wages. 
This increased production, combined with a saving of 
at least one hand feeder to every two presses, together 




The ^^ Economic ^^ Automatic Paper-Feeding Machine attached to a 
Modern Drop-Roller Folding Machine 

Courtesy of E. C. Fuller & Co. 

with Other economies, such as avoiding spoilage of paper, 
make the machine one of the most profitable investments 
ever offered to the printer. In these days no printer 
having steady work for his cylinders can afford to 
continue to run them with hand labor, any more than 
he can continue to run his job presses by foot power. 
A very little calculation shows that the automatic feeder 
is simply indispensable to profit earning, and that the 
pressrooms which are the last to get into line with the 
new order of machinery are likely to drop into the 
sheriff's hands because of their lack of enterprise and 
foresight. 



282 PAPER-FEEDING MACHINES. 

A comparison of the cost of operating two cylinder 
presses by the old and by the new method is very 
edifying in this connection. Suppose we have two 
40x60 modern two-revolution cylinder presses : With hand 
feeding the cost of operating per week in a large city 
will be $20 to $22 for a pressman, and $12 each for two 
feeders, and $45 to $55 for general expenses (which 
differ with conditions and the way printers calculate), 
but say a total of $100 cost for the week's run on the 
two machines. A high average for the production from 
the machines will be 100,000 impressions, which the 
printer ought to sell for $150, leaving a margin of $50 
profit on the week's work. 

Let us assume that with ''Economic" feeders the 
production is increased only 20 per cent., though 
there are printers who testify to much larger gains. 
This will give us a product of 120,000 impressions which 
will sell for $180, a gain of $30. But this is not all the 
gain, because the cost of operating has been less. Instead 
of the item of $24 for hand feeders' wages, we have an 
item of $10 for a helper, to which we must add $5 for 
interest, (calculated at 10 per cent.) on the cost of the 
feeding machines. This shows a saving of $9 in cost, 
or a total of $91 instead of $100 for the week's production. 
Putting the result in tabular form for easy understanding, 
we have — 

Cost of operating two cylinders one week by 
hand feeding $100.00 

The product of 100,000 impressions sells for 150.00 

Profit by hand feeding $50.00 

Cost of operating two cylinders one week by machine 

feeding $91.00 

The product 'of 120,000 impressions sells for 180.00 

Profit by machine feeding $89.00 



PAPER-FEEDING MACHINES. 283 

Thus it appears that on only 20 per cent, increased 
production the profit is nearly doubled. If the increased 
product be 27 per cent, the profit is fully doubled. 
Think how much this means to the printer! 

Another way of looking at it is this: There are 2<y 
working days in a month. The printer who owns 
"Economic" feeders gains enough in speed to free his 
presses for five or six days in each month, say a gain 
of 70 days in the year, that he can sell, and yet have 
a less cost than before. At the very moderate price of 
$12 a day for the product of a press this means $840' 
more to be added to his annual receipts if he is clever 
enough to find the work for the unoccupied hours. 

The saving of paper stock has not been figured in 
the above calculations. The feeding machine saves at 
least five-sixths to nine-tenths of the spoilage. It is not 
uncommon for the printer to handle papers worth $4 to 
$12 a ream, or to run $75 to $150 worth of paper 
through a cylinder in a day, and in such cases the saving 
on the spoilage becomes a large consideration. On color 
work the saving is enormous, as the register with auto- 
matic feeding is simply absolute, and the loss by spoiled 
sheets practically nil. Even on cheap stock the automatic 
feeder will commonly save enough paper to pay a large 
interest on the investment. 

We have gone into this detail to show the printer 
that it is not the feeder's wages saved that makes the 
''Economic" paper-feeding machines so profitable, but 
that it is the increased capacity that gives the real profit. 
The press may or may not be run at a faster belt-speed 
with the automatic feeder, but it runs continuously, 
while the hand feeder is always stopping. With an 
automatic feeder, when you decide on the speed at which 



284 PAPER-FEEDING MACHINES. 

you will belt the press you decide also very nearly its 
capacity. With hand feeding, when you run 1,700 an 
hour, you get only 1.200 or 1,300 perfect sheets an hour. 
With the automatic feeder you get the benefit of the 1,700 
an hour speed. 

There are minor items of economy in the use of the 
automatic feeding machines. The press does not run 
idly to tripped impressions, nor is it stopped and -started 
nearly so often, so that the wear and tear on the machine, 
and "the charges for repairs, composition rollers, and for 
oil, etc., are all reduced quantities. These are small 
"things, but they are mentioned here to show that the 
conditions are all in favor of the automatic feeder as 
opposed to hand feeding. 

' : "Another way of calculating the profit to be gained by 
the use of the "Economic" automatic feeding machines 
is this: A plant of six large two-revolution cylinders 
equipped with automatic feeders has the same producing 
capacity as an eight-cylinder plant without the feeders, 
and the saving in help with the former is one pressman 
and five helpers or feeders, which at New York city 
rates means $80 a week economy in wages. Add to 
this another $80 for saving of stock, floor space, power 
and minor expenses, and you have a clear saving of 
$8,000 a year on the plant of six presses with automatic 
feeders, as opposed to the eight-machine hand fed plant, 
both plants being of the same capacity, and supposed 
to run with full work. There is a further advantage in 
the six-machine automatic feeding plant, in that if a rush 
of orders involves night labor at a price and a half this 
price and a half has to be paid to onlv three pressmen 
and three helpers, instead of four pressmen and eight 
helpers, thus enabling the management to do night work 



PAPER-FEEDING MACHINES. 



28^ 



profitably, something that seldom can be done under the 
old conditions. The machines not only do not charge 
any price and a half^ but actually cost much less at night, 




*^ Economic ^^ Automatic Feeding Machine attached to Stop-Cylinder 
Press with Front Delivery 

Courtesy of E. C. Fuller & Co. 

as there are no extra charges of tloor space, insurance, 
etc., to figure against them. 

The superintendent of a large establishment using the 
"Economic" paper-feeding machines figures the savings 
in this way: "Under the old system my cost was $10 
per day per cylinder press, take them big and little as 
they ran through the plant. With the new system my 



286 PAPER-FEEDING MACHINES. 

cost is $9 per day per press. Under the old system my 
presses used to earn $i i a day, or $25 a month of profit. 
Under the new system I find my presses produce so 
much more that they earn $14 a day, or $125 a month 
of profit each. The old system yielded 9 per cent, 
profit on the work done, and 13 per cent, on the 
capital invested. With the automatic feeders, and 
plenty of work for nine months in the year, I make 
35 per cent, on the work done, and am making 50 
to 60 per cent, on the capital, and 1 can keep this 
up until my competitors all put in feeding machines, 
when I suppose competition will lower the rate." 

This illustrates the great saving in profits possible 
with automatic feeders. When the production is in- 
creased 30 per cent, the profits increase in a much 
greater ratio. If present work yield 10 per cent, profit 
on the capital, an increased production of 10 per cent, 
means doubling the profit, or $2,000 of profit where 
before there was but $1,000. This is the secret of the 
tremendous growth of the plants that employ the 
** Economic" feeding machines. 

Turning from the financial to the practical side of 
the paper-feeding problem we find many interesting 
advantages in their use. Take the loading of the paper, 
which may be unpacked in the stock room right on to 
trucks, and piled up six feet high or more, often 
20,000 sheets at a time. The trucks may then be run 
directly into the feeding machine, and stay there until 
the last sheet is fed, thus avoiding all rehandling of the 
paper stock. The machines will feed anything, from 
the flimsiest of cheap news, or the thin book paper 
known as Bible paper, to cardboard, and with equal 
facility. They will supply paper to cylinder presses at 



PAPER-FEEDING MACHINES. 287 

any speed up to 4,000 an hour, and on disk ruling 
machines have been run at double and triple that speed. 
They permit the press to be run at its highest durable 
speed, which is almost always more than the hand 
feeder can maintain. The mechanism is such that the 
register is absolute and unvarying. The sheet of paper 
is brought down gently against the front guides by the 
propelling of tapes, and end register is obtained by an 
end gripper, that takes the paper anywhere within two 
inches, and brings it to the exact point desired. As 
each sheet is handled in precisely the same way under 
the same conditions, each lies against the guides with 
the same pressure, and thus absolute register is secured. 
There is a serious waste in hand feeding of book 
and magazine sheets that later go to the folding 
machines, owing to the f^ict that the hand feeder fails 
to register all his sheets correctly in going through the 
press, and when they come to be fed to the modern 
rapid drop-roller folders, which use the same margins 
of the sheet as were used on the press for registry, the 
inaccuracy of the first feeding puts the pages out of 
centre at the folder, though the folder be accurately 
fed. As most folding machines are now constructed to 
handle two or four signatures at once, the result of an 
error in feeding at the press spoils a full sheet of two 
or four signatures at the folder. This form of spoilage 
or loss is particularly noticeable where perfecting presses 
are used, for on these the sheet always backs, whether 
correctly fed or otherwise; consequently the hand feeder 
knowing that the pressman cannot readily tell whether 
his sheets are accurately or inaccurately fed, naturally 
grows careless, and so allows a much larger number 
of sheets to go in slightly out of register, thinking that 



288 PAPER-FEEDING MACHINES. 

nobody will ever notice them, or, if they do, that the 
errors will not be brought home to him. The sheets 
then go to the bindery, where the errors in feeding at 
the press result in irregular margins, which are very 
liable to get into the books or magazines, and be dis- 
covered at a later date, causing the return of the books 
to the printer, to have the signatures torn out and 
replaced, with no end of nuisance and expense. 

All this sort of difficulty is avoided by the use of 
the "Economic" feeding machines on both presses and 
folders. They can be relied upon to deliver the sheets 
accurately any time and all the time, and as the sheets 
come from the press all alike there is no loss or 
wastage discovered at the folder, or worse yet, after 
the sheets are bound up and perhaps delivered to the 
customer. In color work, where there are say ten or 
twelve impressions on one sheet, as often occurs in 
lithographic printing, there is sure to be a delivery of 
all-perfect sheets to the customer, when "Economic" 
feeding machines are used, instead of a very large per- 
centage of slightly-out-of-register sheets, which is usual 
where the work is hand fed, because the printer cannot 
afford to throw them away. When it comes to feeding 
a thousand sheets through a press twelve times by 
hand, the spoilage becomes a tremendous item, as the 
percentage of inaccuracy is multiplied by twelve. The 
register of the "Economic" feeders being absolute, 
there is no spoilage worth mentioning. 

A little reflection will show the mechanical reasons 
why the automatic feeder so certainly increases the 
product over hand feeding. The man feeder has to 
stop once in so many hundred sheets to put up a new 
lift of paper, and roll or comb it out. This involves a 




I 

5 



G 



a. 



290 PAPER-FEEDING MACHINES. 

loss every time of certainly seventy-five to one hundred 
impressions. Then he must spoil the top and bottom 
sheet of each lift by smutting in handling, and in 
printing on both sides that usually means four sheets 
to the lift. The average feeder requires to stop at least 
once on a lift, either to comb out his paper a little 
more or to turn down some corners, and if the press 
is making good speed he will trip the impression or 
stop two or three times from other minor causes. 
Then he will deliberately quit to get a drink of water, 
or to talk to somebody, or for any one of a score of 
other things that come up many times in the course of 
a day. In hand feeding there is yet a farther loss 
because of the breaking in of new feeders occasionally, 
or the using of substitute feeders who are not as ex- 
pert as the regular hands. The automatic machine 
feeder overcomes every one of these drawbacks. It 
starts in at the best speed at which the press is capa- 
ble, and keeps up the work hour after hour, never 
tiring, never filtering. If the paper is torn or faulty it 
automatically stops the press and trips the impression, 
so that no damage results, and there is no more loss of 
time than there would be if a hand feeder was manip- 
ulating paper not in condition to be fed to the press 
— in fact, not so much, for the hand feeder sometimes 
gets confused when his paper goes wrong, and lets the 
press take an impression on the tympan, whereas the 
automatic feeder trips the impression and puts on the 
brake with certainty, so that there is no such thing as 
offsetting on the tympan by reason of skipped sheets. 
The great stack of paper that can be piled on the 
"Economic" automatic feeder at one time not only 
saves the putting up of lifts as detailed, but renders it 



PAPER-FEEDING MACHINES. 29 1 

easy to keep the press moving during the entire nine 
working hours, as the stockman can be employed to 
load up the trucks over night so that the stock is there 
ready to be operated upon the instant the whistle blows 
for starting up the power. The paper is fed from the 
top of the pile, and although the pile may be six or 
seven feet high and very heavy, yet it is raised auto- 
matically and fed upwards so that the top sheet is 
always at the correct level. 

Electricity does not interfere with the correct move- 
ments of the paper in the ''Economic" feeding machines 
because the sheets are not combed out (a process that 
tends to gather electricity) but raised one by one from 
the pile and moved on the air. The method is largely 
that of the hand feeder, except that the labor of combing 
out the paper is saved, and the sheet is lifted at the two 
rear corners instead of the two end corners. The hand 
feeder draws the sheets back to get the air under them, 
and the automatic feeder lifts the corners and blows the 
air under. 

A record of 37,000 sheets run without a stop or hitch 
has been made by the "Economic" automatic paper- 
feeding machine. This continuous smooth running is 
obtained by a perfection of safety devices that counteract 
the tendency to irregularity of action arising from the 
uncertain condition of a pile of unprinted paper. These 
feeders operate without any error or uncertainty as long 
as the paper is in proper condition, and when the paper 
is wrong for any reason the machine is automatically 
stopped so that the attendant can make the paper right. 
If two sheets are so glued together that one pulls the 
other to the guides of the press, a little electrical detector 
discovers the added sheet, and throws mechanism into 



292 PAPER-FEEDING MACHINES. 

Operation to move the belt-shifter and put on the brake. 
The same thing occurs when a corner is turned down, 
or when a sheet is so torn or mussed that it could not 
go through the press without danger of getting on the 
rollers. There is no missing of sheets to offset the 
tympan. 

It is an inspiring sight to one not familiar with auto- 
matic feeders to go through a large pressroom so 
equipped. The first thing that strikes one is the large 
number of machines that are running, and the small 
number of men about. The force in the pressroom is 
cut in two, and even then the men have little to do. To 
see a great two-revolution, or a perfecter, running steadily 
along at high speed, and nobody paying any attention 
to it, nobody near, is at first a shock to the printer-visitor, 
who thinks that surely something must go wrong with 
the combination; but after a while wonder gives place 
to familiarity with the situation, and he says to himself: 
"Well, that is great! Why don't we have them in our 
place .^ Certainly it doesn't cost much to do printing 
when the machines run themselves." 

Owing to simplicity of adjustments and to absence 
of suction devices the "Economic" feeding machines 
are adapted to all classes and grades of paper used in 
printing. Various inventors have tried to perfect ma- 
chines to feed paper by lifting the top sheet by suction. 
There is alwavs uncertainty whether the suction will 
lift one or two sheets, and when the weight or quality 
of paper is changed the suction also has to be adjusted 
to a nicety at great loss of time, before it is approxi- 
mately right for the changed paper. As a result those 
experienced with this class of machinery have given up 
suction as impractical, and it has been entirely ex- 



PAPER-FEEDING MACHINES. 



293 



eluded from the mechanism of the " Economic " feeding 
machines. 

There is no grade of paper so difficult to feed that 
it cannot be handled better and cheaper by these ma- 




*' Economic ^* Automatic Feeding Machine as applied to a Ruling 

Machine 

Courtesy of E. C. Fuller & Co. 



chines than with hand feeding. The changes from one 
size of paper to another involve only the shifting of 
the buckling devices and blowers, which is about the 
same work as shifting the tapes on a tape-delivery 
press. When the automatic feeders were first brought 
into use it was supposed that they were fitted only 
for rather long runs, but in practice it is found that 



294 PAPER-FEEDING MACHINES. 

users apply them for all runs of half a thousand or 
more. In other words the saving of time and paper 
in running five hundred impressions is enough to 
make it worth while to adjust the automatic feeder for 
use. If there is a run of only a hundred or so, and it 
is desired to dispense with the automatic feeder for that 
job, it in no way interferes with the putting up of a 
lift and supplying the sheets by hand. 

The firms using the "Economic" automatic feeding 
machines have been liberal in publishing praises of 
their merits. Very many of them express surprise after 
installing the machines at the increase in their product, 
which is more than they expected. It is noteworthy 
that those who order one or two feeders almost invari- 
ably order more within a few years, either because they 
desire to increase the output and economy of their 
remaining cylinder presses, or because their business 
has grown, and demands more presses with automatic 
feeding machines. 

It is of interest in this connection to note just what 
purchasers and users of the "Economic" feeding ma- 
chines say about them. The Ladies' Home Journal is 
fed by them, and the owners, The Curtis Publishing 
Co., in a letter to E. C. Fuller & Co., say : 

" You know how we feel toward your machinery, as is 
evidenced by our recent order for feeders." 

This order was for an additional eighteen machines. 
The Baker- Vawter Co., of Chicago, say : 

"The register of the work is very much better than hand 
fed work; in fact, in this particular there is no comparison. 
On the point of production, we find that the proportion is 
about seven to five; or, in other words, if a hand fed press 
produces 50,000 impressions in a week, a machine fed press 



PAPER-FEEDING MACHINES. 295 

on the same class of work will produce "70,000 impressions in 
a week. We do not see how we could get along without 
them, either for our presses or for our ruling machines." 

On July I, 1897, Ginn & Co., of Boston, wrote : 

" We have eight of our printing presses equipped with the 
' Economic ' paper-feeding machines, and it affords us pleas- 
ure to testify to the merit of the machines. We regard them 
as a complete success, both on our printing presses and fold- 
ing machines. We have found them satisfactory in every 
way and a great improvement over hand feeding. By their 
use we get a large increase in production, better register, 
and a saving in labor and the wastage of sheets." 

Since writing this Messrs. Ginn & Co. have installed 
or placed orders for a total of thirty-one "Economic" 
machines. 

The well-known Indianapolis printer, William B. 
Burford, writes as to his first experience with one of 
the machines: 

" We have had little or no trouble since starting it, and 
are getting fully twenty-five per cent, more product by the 
press than we had at hand feeding, besides getting better 
feeding and quite a saving in waste in paper." 

At a later date, he writes : 

"We now have four of your 'Economic' feeders in our 
establishment, some of which have been running about seven 
years, on folding machines, ruling machines and printing 
presses. The last one you put on our Miehle Pony has 
worked without interruption for more than a year, and we 
regard it as one of the most economical investments that we 
have made. We ran 100,000 1-8 sheet, 25x38 dodgers on 
this press a short time ago in seven hours, working five at a 
time, with an average speed of 3,000 per hour, and made 
three changes in the form within that time. We consider the 
feeder a money-maker. We shall put one of these feeders on 
our next fifty-six inch press that we add to our plant." 

Perry, Mason & Co., of the Youth's Companion, 
Boston, were among the early users of the ''Economic" 
feeders for folding machines, and say : 

"The saving made by their use is very great, and we 
should not know what to do without them." 







u 



PAPER-FEEDING MACHINES. 297 

The S. S. McClure Co., wrote in September, 1897: 

"We have the 'Economic' feeding machines on both 
folders and presses and think them the best on the market as 
to register, speed, and ease of operation." 

Since that time the McClure plant has added thirteen 
more feeding machines, operating all its cylinder presses 
in this way. 

The firm of Berwick & Smith, operating the large 
plant at Norwood, Mass., wrote this when they began 
to use the "Economic" feeders: 

"The two automatic paper-feeding machines attached to 
two of our presses have been running continuously now for 
over a month. They have given perfect satisfaction in every 
particular." 

The truth of the last remark is evidenced by the 
receipt of orders for seven more feeders since the first 
installment. 

The Thos. Knapp Printing & Binding Co., wrote in 
1897: 

" We found this machine of very great service to us during 
the late presidential campaign, as we were able to out-class any 
of our competitors on daily production of the literature at that 
time being put out by the Republican Committee, this one 
machine producing for us over 100,000 sixteen-page pamphlets 
per day. This work was on light, cheap paper, size 38x50, 
and the product of this particular folding machine, if fed by 
hand with this large, flimsy sheet, we calculated would not 
have been over two-thirds of the amount, perhaps less. This 
is only one instance of what the feeding machine will do when 
you have work for it." 

Newspaper offices find them useful, too. W. T. Baker, 
publisher of the UHca Saturday Globe, writes concerning 
a machine used by them on a rapid drop-roller folder: 

"The 'Economic' paper-feeding machine which we have 
had in our office for more than a year, feeding seventy-five sheets 
to the minute, has given the best of satisfaction, and is the wonder 
of all who have seen it." 



298 PAPER-FEEDING MACHINES. 

The Boorum & Pease Co., of New York, write thus 
to Messrs. Fuller & Co. : 

"We now have nine of your feeders in use and find that 
they do all that you claim for them." 

And so say scores and hundreds of others. 

The popularity of the feeding machine is evidenced 
by the increase of the plants of the Economic Machine 
Company, the manufacturers. Messrs. E. C. Fuller & 
Co., the selling agents, state that the shopsjn Hartford, 
Brooklyn and New York, have all been enlarged several 
times, and that during 1899 their capacity was increased 
six fold to meet the tremendous demand, arising from 
the fact that the printers of the country have been 
awakened to the enormous advantages arising from the 
use of these machines. 

While the descriptions herein of feeding machines 
have been confined principally to their use on cylinder 
presses, let none suppose that there is any such limit 
to their employment. Folding machines have simply 
doubled and trebled in value and usefulness since the 
automatic feeder was applied to them. 

The "Economic" machines have been for years in 
successful use on drop-roller folding machines, and are 
so employed in nearly all the large book binderies as 
well as the magazine and periodical binderies in the 
United States. On this class of work there is an even 
greater increase of speed than there is on printing 
presses, because the folders are capable of more rapid 
operation. From 30 to 50 per cent, is the usual calcula- 
tion of the increased output resulting on folders from the 
attachment of the automatic feeders. This attachment 
is accomplished entirely without mutilation of the fold- 
ing machine, and although the feeding mechanism is 



PAPER-FEEDING MACHINES. 299 

not as capacious as that usually connected with print- 
ing presses, yet they will accommodate from 5,000 to 
15,000 sheets of paper at one time. There is a slight 
gain in floor space, as the feeding machine takes up 
less room than the hand feed table. 

The most remarkable speeds that have been attained 
with the ''Economic" feeders have been on disk ruling 
machines. Only with the automatic feeders has it been 
possible to obtain the full capacity of modern ruling 
machines. Accurate work is done on them not un- 
commonly at as great a speed as 8,000 an hour, and 
in one instance a speed record was made of over 
12,000 in an hour, just to see what could be accom- 
plished. Even at this speed there was no loss of 
register, or requirement for frequent stoppages, though 
it is faster than the machines were designed to run. 
The feeding machine is readily attached to striker or 
feint line ruling machines, either pen or disk, single, 
double or quadruple, and the operation is so simple as 
not to require attention from the ruling machine attend- 
ant after the paper is placed upon the piling board. 
The adjustment is so very easy that it is economical to 
use the automatic feed for runs of only a hundred or 
two sheets. . From ten to twelve thousand sheets can 
be placed upon the feeder at one time when operating 
with a ruling machine. 

On calendering machines also, and several special 
machines the "Economic" automatic feeder has been 
used with marked success. 

Not the least of the advantages to be derived from 
automatic feeding machines is the comparative immunity 
from the strike nuisance that they insure. Hand feeders 
in the large cities have shown a deplorable tendency 



300 PAPER-FEEDING MACHINES. 

to go on Strike for more wages where they find an 
office filled with rush work. The helpers and press- 
men never strike in offices where the automatic feeders 
are used, for several reasons. In the first place, they 
recognize that they have light work and soft jobs, 
which they want to keep; in the second place, so few 
men are required to run a large pressroom so equipped 
that the men see readily how easy it would be for the 
employer to fill their places, and that they have not the 
strength of numbers that strikers have in a hand feeding 
pressroom; in the third place, the saving is so large 
that it is practical to use well-paid pressmen, who are 
placed more for the responsibility than for the actual 
work that they perform, and who are naturally too 
well satisfied with their places to make any trouble; 
in the fourth place, the helpers do not require any 
special training as do feeders. They have very little to 
do beyond handling rollers and occasionally starting 
the machine. In short, with automatic feeders the 
principal work of the pressroom is done by the ma- 
chines and not by the men, and machines happily do 
not go on strike. 

There can no longer be any question as to the 
preferability of the automatic machine for feeding, 
under any and all conditions, and for all classes of 
work. Those firms that use them first naturally will 
make the most money, while those that wait until the 
loss of their work compels them to put in the machines 
to meet the competition, will get the small end of the 
profit in the universal change just inaugurating in the 
pressrooms and binderies of the world. 

Incidentally it may be of interest to remark that the 
'* Economic" automatic feeding machines were produced 



PAPER-FEEDING MACHINES. 30I 

and developed by an expenditure of some $150,000 in 
money, and a measureless amount of patience and brain 
matter; that they were built by high-class mechanics 
under the latest methods, with jigs and special tools, so 
that all parts are perfectly duplicated, making repairs 
easy and inexpensive, no expert work being essential 
to the fitting or attaching of a new part. 

E. C. Fuller & Co., of 28 Reade Street, New York, 
through whose courtesy the illustrations to this article 
have been obtained, are entitled to the major portion 
of the credit for having brought the paper-feeding machine 
to its present standard of usefulness to the printer, and 
for having afforded the opportunity to make a profit in 
many a pressroom that before failed to show a satis- 
factory balance on the right side of the ledger 



CHAPTER XXX. 

TIMELY HINTS. 

The experience of the gentlemen whose contribu- 
tions follow are well worthy of careful reading by every 
printer. They are men who have studied the business 
end of the printing business from various points of view, 
and who have gleaned much knowledge as to why 
many printing offices fail to pay a profit. Each has his 
own characteristic way of making his points, and each 
has some new thought worthy of attention and serious 
consideration, though the consensus of opinion tends 
all in the one direction — that practical common sense 
methods are essential to profit earning. 



302 TIMELY HINTS. 



J. CLIFF DANDO, 

PHILADELPHIA, PA. 

Aim to do the best work. Be accommodating. 
Promptness — as a policy. 

Do not expect to get every order in sight. 

Mind your own business — not a competitor's. 

Study and determine your own cost — accurately — 
add a profit and quote your price fearlessly. 

Depend upon ''friends" to tell you when it is 
necessary to "cut" — "sharks" will tell you lies. 

If you are positive as to cost, it will enable you to 
detect both the friend and the liar — or, that your com- 
petitor is a fool. 

With this as a "backer," work out your own 
salvation and with ordinary horse sense in management 
the result should be — a profit — even though it is a 
scarce article. 

If you are not positive as to your cost — quit! 



F. L. MONTAGUE, 

NEW YORK CITY. 

The title of your book, "How to Make Money in 
the Printing Business," has set many minds to work to 
best answer the problem, and all undoubtedly with the 
desire to open some "royal road "to accomplish the 
desirable object of bringing the printing business into 
line with other manufacturing, and on as profitable a 
basis. 



TIMELY HINTS. }0} 

There is no ''royal road "to the accomplishment of your 
problem, but it all resolves itself down to increasing the 
price for work or reducing the cost of producing, or both. 

In this machinery age, when great advancement is 
being made in labor-saving devices and the cost of 
work reduced, it is difficult, if not impossible, to increase 
the prices; but the profits can be increased by increasing 
the product without increasing fixed charges and ex- 
penses. 

To my mind, therefore, the printer should pay more 
attention to increasing product, which in ninety-nine 
offices out of one hundred can be done without increas- 
ing any expenses. 

In other words — "Modern Machinery" — is my best 
answer. 

Some printers declare they cannot stand over their 
pressmen with a gun to get the greatest product from 
their presses every day, but so far as the absolute work 
in the printing office is concerned there is nothing so 
important. 

With wages fixed, rent not lessening, non-producing 
expenses of workmen, foremen, book-keepers demanding 
an increase in their salaries, insurance and other inci- 
dental expenses continuing and increasing, the science 
of the printing trade is to get an increased product for 
these fixed expenses. 

The printer can no longer afford to pay rent and 
labor on an Adams press, for example; neither can he 
afford to pay labor and rent and cost of maintenance 
on any obsolete press capable of producing only 6,000 
to 7,500 sheets per day, when his competitors turn out 
from 10,000 to 12,000 per day with no more expense 
on more modern machines. 



304 TIMELY HINTS. 

This extra amount of sheets printed, whatever the 
price received for it, represents a clear extra profit, and 
on large presses, work commanding $2.00 per thousand 
will net an average of from $5.00 to $6.00 per day- 
extra profit, barring alone the extra cost of ink. 
Multiplied by three hundred working days, it makes a 
possible extra profit of from $1,500 to $1,800 per year; 
and multiplying this again by the number of presses 
employed will make a very large extra profit for the 
year. 

To further increase the product, the use of indi- 
vidual electric motors will certainly add an' average 
of five per cent. This is done by the greater number 
of speeds which can be given the press, making the 
variation of not more than fifty per hour, ranging all 
the way from 800 to 2,000 or more per hour, so that 
the press can be run at a maximum speed, depending 
entirely upon the class of work done. 

With the use of cone pulleys the variation is too 
great, and many jobs are printed running at the rate 
of three hundred per hour less than what the job would 
stand, and yet they cannot run at a higher speed, as 
the next step on the cone pulleys would increase the 
speed beyond what the job would permit; and the 
greatest usefulness therefore of electric motors attached 
individually to presses is by means of the numerous 
and variable speeds obtained to secure to the printer 
the maximum amount of product. 

To still further increase the product of the press 
comes automatic feeding machines. Presses have been 
made to stand an increased speed, until they have a 
capacity for product which surpasses the ability or the 
willingness of the feeders. 



TIMELY HINTS. }0^ 

Some printers can get an additional amount out of 
their presses or out of their feeders by estabHshing a 
day's run as a quid pro quo at 10,000, and all over that 
run to earn a premium for the feeder. 

The feeding machine has the advantage of feeding 
as many sheets the last hour of the day as at the first 
hour, and the increased product, by means of the 
feeder running steadily, is 15 to 25 per cent. 

Therefore, to summarize as follows: 

The use of modern presses increasing the 

product over old presses 20 per cent. 

The use of automatic feeding machines on 

modern presses increasing the product 20 " 

The use of electric motors increasing product 

estimated 5 '' 

Making a total, by the use of modern ap- 
pliances of 45 per cent. 

Let any printer ascertain his product and let him 
figure what an increased product of 45 per cent, would 
mean, and there would be no need of his making an 
effort to increase prices provided he could get work at 
prevailing rates. 

Now this increase in product of 45 per cent, is ac- 
complished without adding a dollar to expense account 
and is therefore a clear increase in profits. 

Take for example an old press and old 
appliances : a fair run on a large sheet 
would be 7,500 per day; at $2.00 per 
thousand, would equal $15.00 

Less for labor, rent, non-producing expenses, etc. 10.00 

Leaving a net profit per day of $5.00 

Take an increased product of 45 per cent, or, 

say, 12,000 at $2.00, would equal $24.00 

Less labor, rent, etc., the same 10.00 

Net profits per day $12.00 

Increase in profits more than double. 



306 TIMELY HINTS. 

Continue this extra profit of $7.00 per day into 
three hundred working days on every large 
press, and there is a possible gain of $2, 100.00 

Therefore, the modern press, properly equipped, 
is capable of earning in three hundred working 
days ($12 per day) $3,600.00 

Subject to a discount of one-third 

when press is not running $1,200,00 

Interest on investment, wear and tear, etc. 400.00 1 ,600 00 

Making net profits on each modern press $2,000.00 

On old machine, profit per day, $5.00 

equals per year $1 ,500.00 

Less one-third, press standing $500.00 

Interest on investment, wear and tear, etc. 250.00 750.00 

Net profits $750.00 

Or, about one-third of what the modern 
equipped plant will earn. 

Multiply this by the number of cylinder presses in 
the office and you have my solution to your problem. 

At all events, how can the printer ignore modern 
machinery and modern appliances and continue on 
with the old obsolete tools and at the same time 
wonder why he cannot make his business pay ? 



HENRY A. WISE WOOD 

GENERAL MANAGER CAMPBELL PRINTING PRESS & MFG. CO. 



" Tj'pographitis " — The Cause of its Spread and a Remedy. 

In my opinion established printers have more to fear 
from competitors who are subsidized by the manufactur- 
ing concerns from whom they purchase machinery and 
supplies than from any other single source. They are 
forced to compete with weak and struggling printers 



TIMELY HINTS. 307 

who are maintained with the very money which they 
have paid for their machinery and material. 

When a printer pays his supply house in cash, both 
he and his supply house are doing business on a healthy, 
and the only healthy, basis; when the supply house uses 
the cash so received to furnish another printer with 
materials on the credit system it breeds an unnatural 
competitor for the cash paying printer out of the actual 
cash which he has paid. Here we have the very germ 
upon which the disease of " Typographitis " feeds — the 
credit system. 

" Typographitis " is the term I use to designate the 
mania, which is possessed by every journeyman-printer, 
to run a print shop ; and the machinery and supply 
men, those willing angels who take any and all risks 
to start an office, mix the dope that swells the journey- 
man into the "employing printer," and thus are the 
unfit established and kept on their feet by their backers, 
the machinery and supply men, to compete with those 
printing concerns who pay cash for their wants and must 
therefore work at a margin of profit sufficient to enable 
them to meet their bills promptly. 

The poison of the credit system has so completely 
permeated the printing business that it has become one 
of the ragged-edge industries — an industry in which 
invested capital has no sufficient protection, reputation, 
no value reducible to dollars and cents, and in which 
the element of permanence is very slight. And so long as 
the credit system continues, so long will every established 
printing house suffer from the disastrous competition of 
the adventurer, the amateur, and the journeyman, all of 
whom now get into the business, and for the most 
part stay there, with the encouragement and support of 



308 TIMELY HINTS. 

Strong machinery and supply houses who are seeking 
to extend their own business thereby, forgetful of the 
fact that in so doing though its volume may increase, 
yet the proportionate profit of their business will grow 
smaller with the advent of each new concern. 

If I were an established printer and paid cash for 
my wants and had a particularly ugly competitor — one 
who seemed always able to underbid and outconcession 
me — 1 wouldn't quarrel with him, not a bit of it; I 
should put my finger on his press builder and his supply 
man and they would soon grow to see the folly of 
loaning my good money to my competitor in the shape 
of plant, supplies, etc. 

I am aware that many good concerns who came into 
the business in the manner described are now established 
and therefore beyond the need for a paternal press builder, 
but I am warranted in saying, that for every concern so 
starting that has become a credit to the industry there 
have been countless others who lived for a little, or 
continue now to hang on, with no benefit to themselves 
and yet at a tremendous cost to those who had and 
have to withstand a competition from them of the 
deadliest character. 

Where, in this struggle to survive, the unfit printer 
secures one job he ruins the price of many others upon 
which he has bid, and so the business of many printers 
about him who are not in his desperate straits may 
be poisoned by his mere existence. 'Such a case cannot 
be treated directly, for no arguments brought to bear 
upon a man so situated will serve to alter the conditions 
which surround him. But to go to the root of the 
matter, his backers must be found, and where possible, 
made to feel their responsibility in the premises. 



TIMELY HINTS. 309 

I sum up then with this: the disease of printerdom 
is " Typographitis;" the agents which promote its spread 
are press builders and all supply men; the remedy is to 
watch the agents of infection and hold them directly 
responsible for the existence of every unfit competitor — 
then will there be no further need for a Paul Nathan to 
lead printers out of the wilderness. 



THE AMERICAN PRINTER 

A Monthly Magazine Published at 150 Nassau Street, New York, 
BY J. Clyde Oswald. 

The American Bookmaker (the name under which 
The American Printer was originally published) was 
founded in 1885, by Howard Lockwood, and for many 
years was conducted in the interests of the book- 
making, printing and binding trades. When Mr. Lock- 
wood died in 1892, the ownership remained with Howard 
Lockw^ood & Co. In February, 1897, J. Clyde Oswald 
assumed the editorship, and the name was changed to 
the Printer and Bookmaker . At the same time the 
character of the publication was broadened, the illus- 
trative features developed, and new writers added to 
the staff of contributors. The interests of the printer, 
and especially of the employing printer, were studied 
and discussed, and soon became the main theme of the 
publication. In the meantime the ownership had passed 
to the Printer and Bookmaker Co., and in 1899, Mr. 
Oswald secured a controlling interest, and now issues 
The American Printer as editor and publisher. 

During the period from 1897 t3 1900, there was a 
steady development, both in quantity and quality of 



310 THE AMERICAN PRINTER. 

matter printed; the publication has doubled in thick- 
ness, quadrupled in illustrative features, and is an 
admirable example of the highest excellence in the arts 
of the printer, illustrator and engraver. It has become 
the recognized medium for exchange of intelligence 
between the master printers of America, and in every 
issue there may be found from one to half a dozen 
contributions from printers and publishers of eminence 
in the trade, evincing the interest they take in this 
method of communicating with the craft. Its pages 
have come to be recognized as reflecting the true senti- 
ments and issues among the men who make the print- 
ing trade what it is. DeVinne, Little, Morehouse, Hud- 
son, Matthews, Lee, Nathan, Blanchard and many others 
of equal prominence, who write for the elevation of the 
printers' art and the prosperity of the trade, are to 
be found among the contributors. 

The departments include ''Note and Comment," 
which is virtually editorial criticism of passing events. 
Here are discussed existing issues and problems that 
confront the printer in his vocation. The utterances are 
frank and outspoken, seeking to give the truth as the 
editor sees it, unhampered by narrow considerations. 

The "Estimating Department" is unique in that it 
seeks to educate the printer to figure up and not to 
figure down, as has been the general tendency of dis- 
cussions on estimating. It is an effort to assist the 
printer to the making of better and more profitable 
prices, to demonstrate how much work really costs, 
and the folly of price cutting. 

"Publicity for Printers" deals with the advertising 
side of the printery. It has become recognized that the 
business of a printing office can be developed enor- 



THE AMERICAN PRINTER. 3II 

mously by clever methods of advertising, and an exchange 
of thought on this subject is vigorously maintained. 
The department is intended for the use of the printer 
who advertises and wants to know how to make it 
pay more, and for the printer who does not know how, 
but who would advertise if he did know how. 

A considerable amount of space is also devoted to 
the interests of the photo-engraver, electrotyper, book- 
binder and trades allied to printing, and the employers 
in these callings mostly subscribe for and read The 
American Printer. 

The news of the trade for the current month is 
always summarized or given in such detail as its impor- 
tance warrants. The advertising pages contain announce- 
ments by all the leading manufacturers of printers' 
machinery and appliances, and of goods generally sold 
to allied trades. 

The subscription price of The American Printer is 
$2 a year; on sale wherever printers' literature is sold, 
or it may be had of type-founders and supply houses 
generally. 



ADVANCE IN TYPESETTING MACHINERY. 

A PRACTICAL justifying typesetting machine is the 
"long felt want" of every composing-room. The day 
for hand composition has gone by; the three-man type- 
setting machine has proved too costly in comparison 
with a one-operator machine for producing line-slugs; 
while the line slug machine has proved unsatisfactory 
for a fine grade of work. The machine needed to fill 
the gap is a typesetting machine proper, with such 
automatic justification that it can be run at a high 
speed by one man. 

The Empire Typesetter has been recognized for many 
years as the best machine for setting and distributing 
foundry type, as it has given all the keyboard speed that 
the operator could finger, and provided automatic dis- 
tribution that did not break the type. The machine 
had but one fault — a second operator was required to 
do the justification by hand. This fault has been 
entirely overcome in the one-man justifying machine 
which The Empire Machine Corporation is now offering 
the printer. It is provided with a justifier that is 
simple and compact, and that performs the whole 
operation of automatically spacing out the line to 
measure. The work is done directly in front of the 
operator, where it is under his supervision at all stages, 
so that every chance of error or accident is eliminated. 
The spaces used are solid or non-springing, so that the 



ADVANCE IN TYPESETTING MACHINHilY. J13 

composed matter is in every respect the same as hand- 
composed type matter, and may be corrected, electro- 
typed or stereotyped exactly the same as hand-set type. 
For these reasons the system of justification is superior 
to other systems now being exploited, as each and all 
of them present some objection or drawback or impose 
some new condition involving difficulty for the printer. 

The Empire justifying typesetting machine with 
justifying attachment will produce more ems per hour 
of high class, perfect composition than any other 
machine on the market, and with the labor of a single 
operator. The distribution is accomplished by a separate 
machine, two of which can be run by a boy or appren- 
tice. The labor cost of operating the machine is there- 
fore the lowest possible. No machinist's attention is 
required, as the mechanisms are all simple and do not 
readily get out of order. There is no question but 
that the mechanical parts of the Empire machines are 
far simpler and more readily managed by unskilled labor 
than those of any other machine of the sort. 

In the first place, the arrangement of the keyboard 
provides for rapid fingering by such a positioning of 
the keys that the more common combinations come in 
regular order from left to right, thus enabling an 
operator to fmger several characters in rotation with 
adjacent fingers, almost as he would strike them with 
a single pressure. Rapid fingering is further assisted 
by relieving the keys of heavy work. When the 
operator depresses a key, the very lightest touch is 
sufficient, as the key simply opens a passage through 
which a current of compressed air rushes to force a 
pusher that thrusts out the required type from a 
channel. The little reservoir of compressed air is kept 



314 ADVANCE IN TYPESETTING MACHINERY. 

full by a simple arrangement resembling a bicycle 
pump driven by the power applied to the machine. 

When the type is pushed out it falls to place by 
gravity down a transparent glass slide that enables the 
operator to see just what is going on. The striking of 
a space-key causes a mechanism to insert the thin end 
of a wedge into the line. When as much type is 
composed as will make a line, a line-key is touched, 
and the line is at once carried away to be automatic- 
ally spaced, while the composition proceeds. The 
method of changing the wedges for spaces of the 
proper justifying size is interesting, and takes place 
within full view of the operator, the devices being of 
the simplest character. The line is first carried from 
the place of composition to a stop, which engages the 
projecting ends of the tlrst wedge in the line and stops 
Its movement directly under the discharge openings of 
a space-rack, which contains a supply of spaces of the 
different sizes. The temporary wedge space-bars are 
first pushed further through the line, spreading it to its 
full measure, and at the same time the space-rack is 
automatically moved until the compartment containing 
spaces of the proper thickness to replace the space-bars 
is brought directly over the line. A plunger then pushes 
a space down into the line at the same time that the 
wedge is withdrawn. This operation is automatically 
repeated until each wedge in the line has been with- 
drawn and replaced by a space of the proper thickness. 
The machine itself, without any attention whatever from 
the operator, always selects spaces of the required 
thickness to space out the lines uniformly and exactly. 
Everything is automatic and proceeds smoothly, the 
line being carried to its final position in the galley, 



ADVANCE IN TYPESETTING MACHINERY. 315 

Still within full view and within easy reach of the 
operator, who can make corrections at almost any 
stage of the work, without shifting from his position. 

It is with these simple mechanisms, all arranged 
within a small space, and operating without intricacy 
or dependence upon electricity or complicated devices, 
that the Empire machine does its work. It gives the 
very best product, founders' type of any face, accurately 
set and justified by one man, and accomplishes it with 
less mechanism than any other machine. Because it 
has few parts, all operating directly and within full 
view, it becomes a practical, every day machine, the 
sort that will stand to its work week in and week 
out, never baulking or requiring the services of an 
expert to keep it in order. It is to typesetting 
machines what the Gordon has been to other job 
presses, a success because of its easy running and 
entire absence of causes for bothering, or pottering 
around and putting in time without receiving results. 
It sets type all the time, as many hours a day as there 
is a man at the keyboard, causing no delays, and it 
sets and justifies the type as it should be done. 

The distributing part of the Empire machines has 
been vastly improved and brought up to date. It now 
unleads dead matter automatically, and can be run at 
a rapid speed. The attendant has only to pack the 
dead type squarely on the galley, and turn on the 
power, and then to carry away the magazines as they 
are filled. The face of the type is not submitted to 
friction or any chance of battering or injury. 

While the Empire machines are made with maga- 
zine channels for definite sizes of type bodies, yet one 
machine can be made to handle several sizes, as ten 



3l6 ADVANCE IN TYPESETTING MACHINERY. 

point and nine point, both on a ten point body, and 
eight point with a shoulder for leading. In this way 
a considerable range is provided with a single machine, 
and with two or more there can be had all the type 
bodies likely to be required in a printing office. The 
principal offices of The Empire Machine Corporation 
are at 203 Broadway, N. Y. 



PAPER JOGGERS AND ALARM COUNTERS. 

No printer having a cylinder press 
can afford to be without a paper- 
jogger. The cost is only $13 to $20, 
according to size, and by evening up the sheets as 
they fall on the delivery table, it saves not only the 
time of jogging up the paper by hand, but the spoil- 
ing of such edges as protrude from the pile when the 
paper is not jogged up. If a cylinder press is run all 
day without a jogger, somebody must spend at least 
two hours to jog up the sheets by hand, or there will be a 
loss of possibly a dollar in spoiled paper. The best 
joggers made are those of the pioneers in the business, 
R. A. Hart & Co., 42 Lincoln St., Battle Creek, Mich. 
They also make counters at from $3 to $15 each, with 
alarms, and counters ringing automatically at 100 and 
500; all of which are money-savers for the printer. 
Their new $3 counter for small presses is the best on 
the market. 




HOW DO YOU BUY YOUR INKS? 

In an early chapter of this book the printer is urged 
to see that he buys to advantage, for carefulness in 
buying may add quite as much to a year's profits as 
good selling. The printer buys machinery, type, paper, 
and ink — less ink than any of the other goods, hence he 
is most apt to order carelessly, paying little attention to 
what he gets or what he pays. 

Undoubtedly the correct policy for the printer is to 
buy always the best inks that his papers will carry, and 
to purchase them at the closest prices obtainable; but 
the difficulty in carrying out this policy is that the 
printer is usually wholly unable to know the quality of 
the ink he buys until after it is in use and paid for. 
He may assume that 6-cent news ink is better than 
4-cent, and that one dollar book ink is superior to 50- 
cent book, and yet he is often liable to pay six cents for the 
inferior news and one dollar for the inferior book! 

A few years ago a certain firm in a kindred line 
decided to go into the ink business, and taking the name 
of a foreman, which happened to be similar to that of an 
ink manufacturer of long reputation, proceeded to adver- 
tise in the most lavish manner, offering inks at very 
moderate prices. They received orders almost by the 
carload, from Maine to California, and for a time were 
doing about one-fourth of the ink trade of the country. 
But of course such heavy advertising expenses had to 
be paid for in some way, and the only way for them 
was to take it out of the quality of the ink, and the 
barrels and barrels of coal tar and cheap petroleum that 
went out attested to their ability in imposing upon the 
printer. Of course that ink business collapsed, but the 
printing trade as a whole should profit by the lesson, 
which is to buy only of an ink house that has the trade 
and confidence of large printing houses, and which does 
not spend enormous sums in advertising its goods. 



^l8 HOW DO YOU BUY YOUR INKS? 

Such an ink house is that of Philip Ruxton, at 290 
Broadway, New York. His is a name seldom seen 
upon the broad pages of the trade press, because he 
prefers to put the cost of the advertising into the inks. 
Upon his ledgers are to be found the names of some 
of the largest and most conservative printers in the 
United States, whose proprietors have learned that the 
name Ruxton in inks means what Rogers does in 
silverware, being a guarantee that the quality to fit the 
price is always given. They have learned that a dollar 
ink from Ruxton has a dollar's worth of value in it, 
and so on with every grade and price. They do not 
have to haggle about prices, or to test the quality of 
every lot that comes into the place. They simply 
decide what grade of inks they will use on certain work 
and place the order with Ruxton, confident of the re- 
sults. This sort of advertising is a slow kind, but it 
is sure, and while the Ruxton inks are not as well 
known as some, where they are known they invariably 
head the list. 

Ruxton inks are mixed on honor; he cannot afford 
to mix them any other way^ because he would ruin 
the reputation already built. He sells inks in any quan- 
tity, for any purpose of the printer or lithographer, 
from ounce tubes of colored inks to hogsheads of news 
inks, and at all prices, just as the customer orders, but 
always with the Ruxton guarantee that the quality is 
all that a careful management will allow for the price 
charged. The printer who buys his inks knows that 
he is buying wisely, and avoiding the nuisance of bar- 
tering to secure a lower price, as the first price is 
always the lowest, and invariably lower than he can 
buy the same grade of any heavily advertised inks. 
The stock carried is always large, so that prompt deliv- 
eries are made. Every endeavor is made to adapt the 
inks to any special papers required by the customer; 
in fact the service is intelligent and satisfactory in every 
way. 



3^9 



PERFECTION WIRE STITCHERS. 

These celebrated machines, manufactured by The J. 
D. Morrison Co., are in use in printing-offices and book- 
binderies all over the civilized world, many thou- 
sands having been sold in the United States alone. No 
office intending to do binding can be considered complete 
without at least one of these machines. 

Those known as the old style ''Perfection," viz.: 
"A," "C," ''E," ''F," "G," "H," and "No. 7 " are too 
well known to the trade to need any introduction or 
explanation here. However, within the past few months 
The J. D. Morrison Co. have placed on the market their 
line of New Perfection Stitchers, Nos. 2. 4, 6, and 12. 
These machines mark the highest development in their 
class yet attained, and as their name implies are as 
near Perfection as the human mind can devise. 

The capacity of these machines vary on books or 
pamphlets from two sheets to ^-inch; up to i>^-inch 
in thickness may be stitched. The J. D. Morrison Co. 
have departed entirely from the traditionary lines of 
construction in making these machines, and have in each 
of them new patented spring roll feeding devices, with 
automatic adjustment to any size of wire, and new 
patented cut-off and clinching apparatus. 

The forming and supporting devices, also patented, 
deserve special attention, as the forming is done separ- 
ately, to save wear on the supporter, and the supporter 
has a backward motion which leaves the front of the 
machines entirely free to the operator. 

The machines are made so that the parts are inter- 
changeable, and no change of parts is required when 
changing from one size of wire to another. Their 
durability and small cost for maintenance is attested 
by hundreds of the largest concerns in the world. 

The recently established English, French and German 
agencies for The J. D. Morrison Co., place them in a 
position to supply European customers more directly 
than heretofore. 

The J. D. Morrison Co. are also the largest dealers in 
bookbinders' and box makers' stitching wire in the United 
States, and carry a complete stock of all the sizes both 
round and flat, at their head office, 60 Duane Street, 
New York City. Their wire is guaranteed in every 



}20 SUPERIORITY IN TYPES. 

particular, and some idea may be had of the extent of 
this branch of their business when it is known that 
any ordinary month's sales will aggregate four hundred 
million (400,000,000) stitches. 

For prices and all particulars, apply to them direct 
at the above address. 



SUPERIORITY IN TYPES. 

For nearly a century the Old New York Type Foundry 
has been to the fore in the typefounding industry of 
America, and as Farmer, Little & Co., and later as The 
A. D. Farmer & Son Typefounding Company, it has 
been second to none. Among its productions will be 
found the largest collection of body type faces made by 
any one foundry anywhere. The concern has been led 
to produce so great a variety of body type faces, by the 
numerous requests from time to time for special designs 
for some particular work. Orders of this sort came un- 
solicited because of the exceptional talents and expertness 
of the designers and punch-cutters who have been trained 
in the service of that foundry. As most of these body 
faces have been cut in steel punches, they are the best and 
sharpest known to the printers' art, far outranking the 
faces reproduced by other processes. Owing to long ex- 
perience in the making of alloys, this foundry has been 
able to produce a metal for body type which thousands of 
printers testify to as outlasting any other type metal ever 
offered them. 

The display faces of the Farmer foundry are character- 
ized by usefulness and wearing quality rather than bizarre 
effects. All the plain and more standard faces are to be 
found in great variety in their specimen books. While 
they cut novelties as occasion requires, they cater rather 
to the requirements of the every-day printers and pub- 
lishers who want serviceable type. 



THE BEST IN ROLLERS IS THE CHEAPEST. }2l 

One of the latest productions of seasonable faces is a 
beautiful series from 6 to 12-point, known as Old Style 
No. 40, d. signed for the very best grade of book and 
magazine work. This is an old style, distinctive in 
character, having a condensed effect without much con- 
densation, and being entirelv without hair-lines or unpro- 
tected serifs. It is a letter that will wear indefinitely, and 
retain its characteristics as it wears, instead of breaking 
down and thickening as do hair-line characters. 

This firm rounds the century mark in 1904, and for 
three generations has enjoyed a liberal patronage from 
most of the great printing and publishing houses of the 
new world. 



THE BEST IN ROLLERS IS THE CHEAPEST. 

Good rollers are the secret of good presswork. The 
manufacture of composition that retains its life and suction 
for a long period has been brought to its highest perfection 
in the largest establishment on the globe, that of O. J. 
Maigne, at 324, ^26 and 328 Pearl Street, New York. Mr. 
Maigne, whose reputation is world-wide as a producer of 
the best article known to the trade for the operation of 
printing presses, associated himself in 1880 with D. J. 
Reilly under the firm name of D. J. Reilly & Co., which 
style was continued until the death of Mr. Reilly in 1889. 
Since that time Mr. Maigne has continued the business, 
and has from time to time enlarged the plant, until he has 
now the largest and most complete establishment in the 
world for the production of printers' rollers. It is pro- 
vided with all the latest and most improved facilities, 
including tons of special machinery, such as "roller- 
casting " machines and improved machinery required for 
the manufacture of Printers' Rollers of all sizes and descrip- 
tion, costing upwards of $20,000. The capacity of the 
plant is so great that customers are served in the shortest 



}22 SUPERIOR EXCELLENCE IN PLATEN PRESSWORK. 

possible time. The receiving of new rollers when they 
are wanted often doubles their value to the printer. 

Mr. Maigne also manufactures an article for dispersing 
electricity in paper, which has achieved a marvelous 
success. There are many imitations on the market, but 
the trade has concluded that Maigne's Electric Annihilator 
is the only production that accomplishes the desired effect, 
and the sale of it is exceedingly large. Every printer 
should keep it in stock, as he can never tell when the 
electric nuisance will tie up one or more of his printing 
machines. 

There has also been added to the business the manu- 
facture of Pressroom Paste, which, although a recent 
feature of the establishment, has already attained a splendid 
reputation amongst printers, and a correspondingly large 
sale. Being put up in several grades and in packages of 
all sizes it is very convenient. 



SUPERIOR EXCELLENCE IN PLATEN PRESSWORK. 

There are many printers who gaze respectfully at the 
higher grade productions of printing presses, and who 
admire them, but who realize in a vague way that they 
cannot produce such results. Sometimes they think it is 
their own lack of experience in executing an extra quality 
of presswork, whereas the chances are in nine cases out 
often that they have not the press that will produce the 
very best results. There is only one style of job press 
that gives the printer practically an unlimited amount of 
ink distribution and an overplus of impressional power, 
and that press is the John Thomson Colt's Armory ma- 
chine. The value of this press to the printer has simply 
doubled since the halftone illustration came into common 
use, for no class of printing requires such excellence of 
machinery. To do good work from halftone plates there 
must be an entire absence of slur, as the dots are some- 
times i8o to the inch, and a slip of even the thousandth 



SUPERIOR EXCELLENCE IN PLATEN PRESSWORK. }2} 

of an inch not only mars the effect, but fills up the min- 
ute depressions of the plate with ink, so that the work is 
daubv, and frequent wash-ups are required to make it at 
all presentable. A minute slur is the rule rather than the 
exception with three out of every four platen job presses. 
On many classes of work it is not noticeable, so that the 
printer thinks his machine is all right until he tries to 
print halftones, and then he finds that something is 
wrong, though he often does not know what and blames 
the photo-engraver for making a poor plate. With the 
Colt's Armory press the construction renders any sort of 
slurring absolutely impossible. It will print any form that 
can be gotten into the chase, and will give as good ink 
distribution on the corners of the form as elsewhere. 
Every printer knows how poor is the inking on the cor- 
ners of a form inked by disk distribution; also that the 
last roller to pass over a form on such a press is the 
one that has covered but a third or a half of the ink disk, 
and so is but half inked. 

The Colt's Armory system of cylinder distribution for 
the ink is unexcelled. The pressman can cut up the ink 
to the last degree, and lay it equally on all parts of the 
form. The disk distribution does not approach it in 
quality, and even the distribution on cylinder presses is 
inferior because of the larger forms depriving the rollers of 
a portion of the ink before the whole form is covered, so 
that on difficult forms it is always possible to tell by the 
imperfections in inking which edge of the sheet was 
inked last. 

The fact that the Colt's Armory presses, which com- 
mand much higher prices than the ordinary platen jobbers, 
are to-day selling very much faster than ever before is 
commended to the attention of thoughtful printers. 
Why are so many preferring to pay twice as much for one 
machine as another of the same dimensions.^ Is it not 
that the superior quality of the work produced brings 
trade to the printing office, and establishes reputations for 
high grade printing ? A hundred or two more dollars paid 



324 BUYING OF PRINTING INKS. 

for a job printing press means a cost of but six or twelve 
dollars a year in added interest, and the addition to the 
character of the work produced and the price commanded 
for the same may be many times as great. 

In the larger sizes the Colt's Armory presses are often 
employed for a high grade of work, as illustrated book 
pages, that would naturally go on cylinder machines, be- 
cause of the superior excellence of the printing and 
greater economy in handling small forms. For three- 
color forms and jobs of difficult register they are far ahead 
of the two-revolution presses. The ease with which they 
can be adapted to embossing, also adds to their earning 
capacity. For price list and further particulars, address 
John Thomson Press Co., 253 Broadway, N. Y. 



BUYING OF PRINTING INKS. 

The buying of printing inks is a matter which requires 
careful consideration, especially as the constant increase 
in the speed of presses, and the great difference in the 
printing quality of papers, that are apparently similar, 
necessitate the careful adjustment of printing ink to its 
intended purpose. Time was when the master printer 
bought the heaviest and stiffest inks he could obtain, 
with the object of receiving a maximum amount of 
color for his money, and then reducing it and manipu- 
lating it to suit himself. Such methods are impossible 
at the present day. The rush and hurry of existence, 
especially in the printing business, would not allow 
the waste of time that would ensue; and in addition, 
the new problems that daily arise require the services 
of a specialist to solve them. 



BUYING OF PRINTING INKS. }2^ 

Therefore, it has come about that to-day inks are 
bought more than ever upon confidence in the ink 
maker, and it is well for a printer to place his orders 
for inks with a manufacturer who has never taken 
advantage of his confidence. 

The manufacture of Ullman's Inks is based on the 
experience of the past and the progressiveness of the 
present. The reputation of Ullman's Inks during the 
past thirty years for high quality is sustained and aug- 
mented by the facilities of a new plant, equipped with 
the most modern machinery and appliances. 

The prices of Ullman's Inks are made in strict 
accordance with the lowest possible cost of production 
and legitimate profits. Ullman's Inks are made to suit 
their intended purpose, and no extra charge is made 
for knowing how to do it. 

For the convenience of New York City trade, a 
downtown branch has just been opened at 23 Frank- 
fort Street, where the Sigmund Ullman Company will 
be pleased to receive friends and patrons. The model 
factory of the Sigmund Ullman Company is situated 
at 146th Street and Park Avenue, and is open for in- 
spection at any time to those interested. 



WESEL SPECIALTIES FOR BETTER-CLASS 
PRINTING OFFICES. 

The average dealer in printing appliances sells a line to 
meet the strictly average requirements of the general 
printer. There is one house — Wesel's — that has built up 
a world-wide trade with the larger printing establishments 



p6 WESEL SPECIALTIES. 

by catering to their very special requirements. The house 
of Wesel makes a complete line of printing materials in 
wood, brass, steel and iron, and a complete line of ma- 
chinery for electrotypers, stereotypers and photo-engravers ; 
and a few special machines for bookbinders, but we here 
invite attention to some few of the Wesel specialties, 
which have resulted in great economies to the printer. 

The Wesel Patent Iron Grooved Block for holding 
plates on the press, is now in use by most of the larger 
establishments which print from plates, and it is confi- 
dently predicted that it will supersede all other styles of 
blocks. It has won this encomium from Mr. Oscar W. 
Brady, superintendent of the printing department of the 
McClure (Magazine) Co., in an address before the New 
York Typothet3e: 

" There is now a block on the market which covers the en- 
tire bed of the press, and accommodates any size of plate, 
and enables you to take off or put on any plate in the form, 
and register it exactly without disturbing any other plate on the 
press. Furniture used for locking up the forms is bound to 
shrink and swell according to the weather, thus throwing the 
forms out of register and causing them to spring in the centre. 
This block not only gives perfect register, but being solid and hav- 
ing no spring, it has a great advantage in regard to the wearing of 
the plates. In three-color work alone this advantage is well 
worth all the block costs." 

The Wesel Self-Inking Proof-Presses which print from 
the web (or roll), or from flat papers, will turn out more 
than five times the quantity of perfect proofs than can be 
produced by the ordinary galley proof-press, to which it 
is as far in advance as a web perfecting press is to a hand 
press. The ordinary galley proof-press is uneconomical 
in the larger printing offices. 

The printer who is interested in reducing wage expense 
by improved labor-saving appliances, will find the Wesel 
Machines for making cuts type high, and for mortising, 
sawing and trimming metal, wood and brass, all 
constructed on the most advanced principles, and all 
moderate in price. 



WESEL SPECIALTIES. 327 

The printer who is interested in reducing rent expense 
will achieve space-saving by using Wesel Success Case 
Stands, space-saving galley cabinets, galleys which are 
self-locking and save not only the side-sticks and quoins 
but the space these ordinarily occupy. 

The printer who is reducing cost of production by 
using linotype and typesetting machines will increase 
savings by using Wesel's equipments for such offices. 
Linotype Saw Tables with slot-cutting attachment for 
expediting tabular work, special galleys, furnaces, ingot 
moulds, slug-cutters, and a variety of improved tools. 
Wesel is the inventor of beveled column rules to prevent 
rules from working up in linotype pages. 

The printer who loses time in getting register and 
straightening twisted forms through defective, inaccurate 
chases needs Wesel Electric-Welded Chases. They cost 
no more than hand-welded chases. It is not possible 
to made so good chases by hand-weld. Wesel is the sole 
owner of the right to make chases by electric-welding. 
Wesel chases are stronger, truer, and thus save time. 

The printer who can save type and cost of composition 
by using stereotype plates will find Wesel's Stereotyping 
Machinery the most perfect, especially the Wesel Cold 
Process Stereotyping Outfits, the first practical outfit 
devised; there have been amateurish, unsatisfactory at- 
tempts — Wesel has satisfactorily solved all difficulties, so 
that without injury to type good plates can be made 
quickly. 

To sum up: F. Wesel Manufacturing Co., at 82-84 
Fulton Street, New York, with factories in Brooklyn, 
makes and sells every regular approved appliance used by 
the printer; and in addition, supplies a line of specialties 
as above which are quick-acting cost-savers. "Wesel 
Quality " is synonymous with the best quality, and 
if you have not availed yourself of Wesel's successes 
you are handicapped in competition with Wesel's 
customers. 



328 



THE ECONOMY OF USING COPPER-FACED TYPE. 

A WHEEL without a tire is unfinished — incomplete. 
This little iron band is universally recognized as essential 
since it presents a wearing resisting surface far more 
durable than the wooden wheel. It is exactly this prin- 
ciple that applies to the copper-facing of type. The coat- 
ing of copper on the face preserves the type compound 
from decay and presents a hard, unyielding surface hav- 
ing double the wearing capacity of any type compound. 
It is impossible to alloy type metal with more than the 
minutest portion of a hard metal, which fact is well 
known to metallurgists. As practical printers we know 
that an electrotype is superior to a stereotype. It is only 
logical to apply this well known fact to copper-facing. 
It not only doubles the life of type, but gives a print that 
is sharper and clearer. An office spending $200 a year 
for new type would save $100 of this, or $2 a week, by 
having type copper-faced when bought. A $50,000 
plant spending $3,000 a year for type uncoppered would 
save at least $1,500, which sum would pay the interest 
on half the capitalization. The cost of coppering is but a 
I fraction of the first cost of type; the letter only is cop- 

pered, without the spaces and quads, and the result is 
equivalent to buying double the amount of type. The 
Newton Copper-Facing Type Co., 18 and 20 Rose Street, 
N. Y., the patentee, was established in 1851, and the 
advantages of the invention it controls may be judged 
from the fact that every large daily from Maine to Cali- 
fornia used type copper-faced by this company when 
printing from foundry cast type. For typesetting ma- 
chines it is absolutely essential, if economy is considered. 



MONEY-SAVING DEVICES. 329 

This company has statements from numerous houses of 
the highest standing, showing that type copper-faced has 
often been in service for ten, twenty and even thirty 
years, and has been subjected to milHons of impressions. 



MONEY-SAVING DEVICES. 

It is in saving many Httle losses of time that the 
careful printer can show a good balance of profit at the 
end of a year. It has been conceded by those who use 
Megill's gauge-pins, gripper-fmgers, feed-guides, etc., that 
they save at least half an hour a day on a job press, 
besides reducing the danger of spoiling paper through a 
loss of register. If you run two job presses you can save 
a whole hour every day, or 300 hours in a year, and figur- 
ing this at only twenty-five cents an hour, that is $75 in 
a year. It is really more than twenty-five cents an hour, 
as can be seen by reference to the chapter on ' 'Estimating. " 
But if it were only $25 a year thus saved, how penny 
wise and pound foolish of the printer not to supply his 
job presses with Megill's inventions, the whole assort- 
ment of which can be had for a few dollars. He makes 
no less than twenty styles and sizes of gauge-pins alone, 
each one a time-saver on some class of work; and a whole 
series of sizes and arrangements of gripper-fingers, for 
pulling off sheets that are difficult to handle. 

Mr. Edward L. Megill, of 60 Duane Street, New York, 
the inventor of these devices, is a practical printer, and 
has spent a lifetime in the study and development of little 
conveniences for platen job presses. He makes them in 
his own factory, and sells them at nominal prices. The 
printer who is not f^imiliar with all the styles should send 
a postal of inquiry and learn. It will save good dollars at 
an expense of cents. Ten to one you will find that you 
had no conception of the many conveniences made by 
Mr. Megill. There are the substantial steel gauge-pins. 



330 A WORD ABOUT PRINTING INKS. 

some with spring tongues that greatly assist the feeder; 
also gauge-pins with screw and eccentric adjustments; 
and gauges that may be glued on like a quad, or 
bolted in the tympan paper. Then there are side gauge- 
pins that depress under the gripper and permit it to grasp 
the sheet; extension feed-guides for sheets larger than the 
platen; and gauges th.nt do not damage the tympan, but 
permit the tympan to be used for many jobs without 
change. Most of these styles are adjustable by one means 
or another so that they may be set accurately to register. 
The spring-tongue gauge-pin is suited to the customary 
work of the job press ; the perfect register gauge is desir- 
able for fine color work. 



A WORD ABOUT PRINTING INKS. 

The printer who seeks to increase his yearly profits by 
pointers gleaned from this book should not neglect con- 
sideration of the best means to secure value for the money 
he has to spend for inks. There are many materials in 
the market the merit or demerit of which cannot be deter- 
mined except by trial, among which are chemical compo- 
sitions, paints, varnishes and inks. But of all articles that 
come under this category probably printing inks are the 
most difficult to select as to quality and probable results. 

The ordinary methods of judging of compounds avail 
little in the case of printing ink. You cannot tell the value 
by looking at it, for a ten-cent black looks as black in the 
keg as a dollar black. The smell gives no clue, neither 
the taste, were the printer willing to daub his tongue in 
the interest of investigation. Neither does the weight 
lend any clue to the character of the ink under considera- 



A WORD ABOUT PRINTING INKS. 33 1 

tion Some try daubing a little with the finger on the 
paper on which they consider applying it, but this only 
yields a close guess as to the color, and nothing as to the 
other qualities. 

How, then, can it be bought knowingly, so as to give 
satisfactory results to the printer who uses it ? Very 
simply. By buying of a maker who has proved that he 
values his reputation, as . ^"he Fred'k H. Levey Co., of 
59 Beekman St., New York, if the business ^»f a manu- 
facturer has been established over a quarter of a century, 
and he has numerous testimonials of the strongest char- 
acter, from literally hundreds of first-class houses, is it not 
the best sort of assurance of the absolutely uniform char- 
acter and reliability of his manufactures.^ 

FRED'K H. LEVEY, Pi-es't. FRED'K H. LfVEY Co. , 

CHAS. E. NEWTON, Vice-Prest. 

WM. s. BATE, Sec'y. 59 Beekman Street, New York. 



TYMPALYN SAVES MAKE-READY. 

BY C. H. COCHRANE OF NEW YORK 

The above is the verdict of some of the most eminent 
printers in America, who have tested its. qualities most 
thoroughly. • The average printing press is unproductive 
for two or three or four hours a day, because forms are 
being made ready. Tympalyn not only saves half or 
more than half the time of making-ready, but increases 
the capacity for production of the pressroom, and affords 
the printer a chance to take more work, which he can 
do profitably, knowing that he will lose no appreciable 
time in getting the forms started on the presses. 



}}2 TYMPALYN SAVES MAKE-READY. 

Tympalyn has proven that there is no need of cut- 
ting overlays in four or five thicknesses to bring out 
the shadows of a fine illustration. With this make- 
ready blanket the contact between plates and paper is 
different from what it is with hard packing, and the 
natural features of the plate are automatically reproduced, 
with a result like that of the engraver's proof. 

Tympalyn is a material in the form of a blanket 
composed of a series of in+-.,ucking spring coils, filled 
with rubber, having an air pocket running the entire 
length to allow the action of the springs. When once 
applied it becomes a part of the press. On top of this 
is a thickness of very hard, specially prepared fibre or 
pressboard, which protects the type or plates in the same 
way as the hard packing, but does not wear them by 
pressure as does the hard packing. Over the press- 
board two or three sheets of manila paper are stretched, 
to afford opportunity for patching up or cutting out, 
only a very little of this being required. 

A long series of experiments were necessary before 
Tympalyn reached the perfected state in which it is 
offered to the trade. The inventor and patentee, Arthur 
S. Allen of Boston, is a practical printer of experience, 
familiar with the niceties of presswork, and the refine- 
ments of the highest class of printing. The spring coil 
wire blanket which he has produced is radically differ- 
ent from the old-fashioned rubber blanket, discarded 
by our fathers. The wire coils automatically search 
out the unevennesses of the form, and print them as if 
they presented a true and level surface. It is not claimed 
that Tympalyn saves the entire process of make-ready, 
but it takes care of a-half to two-thirds of the work, 
according to the nature of the form. With Tympalyn, 
a few large patches on the more solid parts in the form, 
and perhaps a few high points cut out on the tympan, 
are all that are necessary, and these do not require at 
all the accuracy that is requisite for hard packing. 
Sometim;es large forms are made ready in half an hour, 



TYMPALYN SAVES MAKE-READY. }}^ 

and the more difficult class of forms, that often take a 
day or two of the time of high-priced men, working 
on hard packing, are made ready with Tympalyn in a 
few hours. 

Type forms require scarcely any make-ready where 
Tympalyn is used. In open work, as tabular matter, 
poetry, music, etc., where under the old system there 
was required a great deal of patching, the use of Tym- 
palyn often enables the pressman to print a nearly 
perfect impression at the first trial. With halftone 
illustrations, on proper bases, a fine impression may be 
had at the hrst trial. If the work is of the highest 
class, one (rarely more) thin overlay is added to the 
darker parts, covering masses rather than detail, and 
when this is done the resultant printing cannot be dis- 
tinguished by experts from the best work on hard 
packing with four or five thicknesses of overlavs. 

A cylinder covered with Tympalyn does not wear 
type and plates nearly so much as where hard packing 
or rubber tympans are used. A round million of im- 
pressions have been taken from a form of electrotypes 
and the plates at the end of the run showed no serious 
wear. It is with difficulty that the first sheet of a long 
run can be distinguished from the last, so clear and 
sharp do the plates remain. In the case of a form of 
150,000 impressions, experts were able to detect the 
first sheets from the last only by a few trifling batters 
that had been inflicted by the carelessness of the men 
running the form. The corners and unprotected edges 
of the plates are so completely protected by the extra 
hard surface of pressboard, and the pressure of the 
Tympalyn is so trifling as compared with the crushing 
force of hard packing, that wear of plates becomes an 
item not worth figuring on at all under the new 
conditions. 

A considerable saving of power also results from the 
use of Tympalyn on a cylinder press. The lessening of 
the pressure on the press makes it possible in most 



334 TYMPALYN SAVES MAKE-READY. 

cases to speed the machine a Httle faster without reach- 
ing the point where the jar of reversing the bed tends 
to damage the life of the machine. 

In the nature of the case it is impossible to give an 
exact estimate of the saving or profit with Tympalyn, 
but the following may assist the master printer who 
desires to figure it: Suppose a cylinder press on which 
the average make-ready under the old system of hard 
packing was three hours a day, and that with Tympalyn 
there is an economy of one and one-half hours daily; 
this is 4S0 hours of producing capacity saved, which 
the printer can sell at say, $1.25 per hour, or $562.50 
per year, if he knows how to get the work. In addi- 
tion, his type will last twice as long, and his plates 
withstand an indefinite amount of wear, and his bill 
for power is reduced. This economy should represent 
at least $250 a year on a press that is kept busy. So 
that the master printer may effect a saving of $800 a 
year through the use of Tympalyn, without figuring at 
all on the increased speed that he may be able to apply 
to his presses. 

Where the runs are short, three presses equipped 
with Tympalvn will do the work of four with hard 
packing, saving the price of another press. The chances 
are, however, that the printer who equips entire with 
Tympalyn will soon find that he requires more presses 
rather than fewer, for Tympalyn with its reduced cost 
brings ' more trade. Andrew Carnegie is said to have 
acquired his wealth largely by his willingness to sacri- 
fice anything to secure the latest and most improved 
machinery. He would throw out the most costly 
equipment only a year or two after installing, if he 
were offered machines that were ten per cent, better. 
His profit was made, not so much on the saving of the 
labor effected by the new machines, as that in this way 
he distanced all competition, and secured the trade of 
the public. 



TYMPALYN SAVES MAKE-READY. ^^^ 

In the same way the printers who are the first Xo 
adopt Tympalyn will find that the value is even greater 
in the increase of trade and importance of the printery, 
than in the present cash saving, even though that be 
a large item. 

Some have thought that the use of Tympalyn was 
disadvantageous to the pressman, as taking away his 
labor. This proves not to be the case, for where Tym- 
palyn is used the experience is that the reduction in 
cost brings more work to the office, and there is rather 
a tendency to employ more help than to discharge. A 
pressman who can do the most rapid work with Tympalyn 
never finds his wages reduced because the process re- 
quires less skill, but on the contrary employers are apt 
to pay higher wages because they are making more 
money. 

When firms like The Matthews-Northrup Co., Buffalo; 
Harper & Bros., New York; J. J. Little & Co., New 
York; American Book Co., Cincinnati; Berwick & Smith, 
Norwood, Mass.; Blumenburg Press, New York; Rock- 
well & Churchill, Boston; R. R. Donnelly & Sons Co., 
Chicago, etc., adopt Tympalyn and are satisfied with re- 
sults secured, no further evidence seem ■ required to demon- 
strate that it is adapted to the highest grades of work, 
and that it effects a large economy. 

Those interested to read testimonials, terms on which 
Tympalyn is furnished, etc., should address The 
Tympalyn Company, 22-28 High St , Boston, Mass. 
Arthur S. Allen is President, and Forrest E. Lovejoy^ 
Business Manager of the Company. 



SCOTT PRESSES ARE MONEY-MAKERS. 

The employment of good machinery, that will do 
satisfactory work year after year with a minimum of 
repairs, has much to do with the printer's success in 
making a profit in his business. The cylinder presses 
that are the handiest to operate, on which make-ready 
is easy, on which there are no hitches or delays, and 
which are adapted to a wide range of commercial work, 
are the machines with which most printers coin their 
money, if they coin it at all. 

Such presses are those made by Walter Scott & Co., 
of Plainfield, N. j., in a factory under his personal 
supervision, where every detail of manufacture has been 
worked out to the utmost accuracy. Their two-revolu- 
tion cylinder machines are at once the most modern, 
the most solid, the most scientifically constructed of 

any in the market. 
Superior impres- 
sional power, great- 
er distribution, and 
more speed capac- 
ity are the three 
claims made for 

Scott^s Two -Revolution Cylinder Press, ^ , . , ' ^ 

one of which places 

them ahead of competition. The impressional strength 
is secured by an interior bracing of the cylinder-shell, 
giving a stiffness heretofore unknown in such presses, 
and necessary to oppose the unyielding bed, which is 
supported underneath in an equally substantial manner. 
This solidity of construction in the impressional parts 
reduces make-ready to the simple patching up or mak- 
ing level of the form, there being no "spring" to take 
■out of the machine. 

The high grade of ink distribution is secured partly 
by the gearing of all form and distribution rollers so 
that they turn positively and cannot jump, and partly 
by cutting the ink closely at the fountain and laying it 
on the distributers to be completely cut up before it 
reaches the ink table. 




SCOTT PRESSES ARE MONEY-MAKERS. 337 

The speed of the Scott two-revolution is due to the 
up-to-date bed movement, which combines the sim- 
plicity of the old rack-and-tumbler driving with a more 
scientific method of reverse, that eases the bed at the 
point of jar, rendering higher speed possible without 
undue strain on the machine. 

The gearing of bed and cylinder together during the 
entire impression insures absolute register and absence 
of slur, while the positive action of the grippers, firm- 
ness of the guides and absence of jar assist perfection 
of register in the feeding. The traveling-roller delivery, 
depositing the sheet, printed side up, on a table directly 
above the fountain, is admitted to be the most satisfac- 
tory ever placed on a cylinder press. 

The Scott two-revolutions will do more work, do it 
better, and with less fuss and bother than any other 
presses of their class, no matter what claims are made 
for them. They will also outwear and outlast any 
others, as is proven by a long list of testimonials from 
users all over the world. 

For an extra heavy grade of difficult work, as three 
color forms, etc., Walter Scott & Co. build a stop 

cylinder that is about 
a third faster than any 
other stop cylinder on 
the market, the speed 
being obtained by a 
" ' new combination bed 

Scott's New Stop Cylinder. movement with cylin- 

der controlling device. Heretofore stop cylinders have 
been preferred for the finest work, because the cylinder when 
at absolute rest permitted the most accurate seizing of the 
sheet by the grippers; but the stop cylinder has been 
fatally slow, until the Scott machine was brought out. 
Mr. Scott realized that to get speed out of a stop 
cylinder it was essential that a most powerful and 
heavy bed motion be employed, to take up the strain 
of sudden reversal of the bed and stoppage of the 
cylinder. He has produced a mechanism that will carry 





3^8 SCOTT PRESSES ARE MONEY-MAKERS. 

smoothly shocks of reversal that would break up any other 
cylinder ever built. This press can be speeded almost 
as fast as a two-revolution, and bears all the minor 
devices that have made that so popular a machine. An 
automatic slip-sheeting device is also added, making it 
possible to slip-sheet the work at most trifling cost. 
This stop cylinder is also built for lithographic printing, 
either from the stone or aluminum plate, and with 
either it is the fastest lithographic press on the market. 
When it comes to fast periodical printing, the Scott 

all-size rotary has 
proven one of the 
greatest money- 
makers ever used in 
a printing office. 
This press is virtu- 

Scotfs All-Sue Rotary Web Press. ^l^Y ^^^one in its field, 

being the only satis- 
factory machine offered the printer for doing publications 
of all sizes at a high rate of speed. This machine brings to 
the aid of the large book and job printer all the speed and 
economy that the newspaper publishers can get from 
their rotary web presses. Every printer who has work 
for a dozen or more cylinders should investigate this 
machine, and learn how much more cheaply it will 
execute the work to which it is adapted. 

The large line and variety of newspaper web print- 
ing machines, both flat bed and rotary, made by Walter 
Scott & Co. are too well known to be enlarged upon 
here. Those interested' can secure catalogues of them 
by writing to the offices of the Company in either 
New York, Chicago, Boston, St. Louis, Cincinnati, or 
London, or to the factory at Plainfield, N. J. A great 
variety of news and job presses and of stereotyping 
machinery will also be found in the catalogue. The 
printer need only explain his needs to this firm, and he 
will be shown the machinery best adapted to his 
individual wants. 



THE BENEDICT IMPRINT ATTESTS EXCELLENCE 
IN PLATES. 

The illustration is the most attractive thing in the 
printer's product. High-class engraving enables the 
printer not only to please his customers and thus hold 
his trade at good prices, but actually reduces his cost of 
presswork. Probably few printers in ordering engraving 
and electrotyping consider the saving obtained in the 
pressroom by using the best plates. A set of plates may 
be printed from again and again, and if of inferior quality 
may waste an hour or two of both press and pressman on 
each occasion, and the master printer may pay for it 
without noticing it. How much better to have a high 
grade of plates for each and every job, and so secure uni- 
formly beautiful results that establish the printer's repu- 
tation, as well as insuring a return of the extra cost 
through the saving of time in the presswork ! 

In placing orders for halftones, etc., the very worst 
policy for the printer is to seek to get the bottom figure 
per square inch. Should we ever have heard of Michael 
Angelo, had he worked by the square inch ? Perhaps some 
printer-reader may think the comparison far-fetched, and 
assert that the photo-engraver is not an artist, but simply 
a reproducer of art by mechanical means. This is a false 
notion. The every-day photograph reproduced mechan- 
ically at a close price per square inch, is not art but 
manuf^icture; while the high grade illustration calls not 
only for the very fullest technical knowledge and ability, 
but for the real artistic sense. Does any printer imagine 



340 



EXCELLENCE IN PLATES. 



that such work as that reproduced herewith is turned out 
mechanically ? Benedict's imprint is known all over the 
country as attesting excellence, and this result is attained 
only by the most persistent and patient, as well as 
intelligent and capable management. 




Courtesy of Geo. E. Benedict 



The printer who wants the Benedict class of work 
does best to let the photographer work under their ex- 
press direction; for when photographs are poorly toned, 
or have solid colors or abrupt lights in the parts that 
should be nicely graded, or when negatives or tintypes 



EXCELLENCE IN PLATES. 34 1 

are offered as copy, the photo-engraver is handicapped at 
the start, and obHged to add expensive hand work in 
order to secure satisfactory results. 

When the photograph is not all that could be desired, 
or when the subject is ditficult, the photo-engraver finds 
it necessary to resort to the hand graver, to cut out high 
lights ; he has to restore the details lost in the shades 
or shadows, and yet he must not let it appear that a 
graver has been taking out material here and there, for if 
he produces sharp effects he mars the softness so much 
admired in the halftone. All this calls for exceptional 
skill, judgment and artistic appreciation, and it is largely 
because of the exceptional corps of expert retouchers 
trained in their own establishment, that Benedict & Co. 
have achieved such a reputation for superiority in this 
part of the work. 

In the making of zinc etchings, the Benedict ex- 
cellence is quite as noticeable. The providing of proper 
drawings has much to do with superior results in this 
class of engraving. All drawings should be made in 
clear black lines on clean white paper, and without flat 
tints or blurred shadows. If Benedict & Co. make the 
drawings, as well as the etchings, perfection is assured, 
for years of experience in this branch have enabled them 
to build up a staff of pen artists unexcelled anywhere. 
In the old method of wood-engraving, which is still the 
best for illustrating many subjects, particularly machinery, 
the best of work is insured by this firm, as they have 
retained in their employ some of the most exceptionally 
expert of the fast-disappearing generation of wood- 
engravers. 

The less known wax process, which is particularly 
suited to geographical work, diagrams, fine scripts, in- 
tricate rule work, etc., is practiced at the Benedict plant 
with success, as are also several special methods and pro- 
cesses developed by themselves and retained for the 
improvement of their own product. A large business is 
also transacted in steel and copper-plate engraving, plate- 



342 EXCELLENCE IN PLATES. 

printing and stamping, as for the choicest wedding invi- 
tations and visiting cards. Type printers desiring to 
serve their customers with the very best of this class of 
work, at a rate that will afford them a profit, are invited 
to write for a price list. 

In order to get the very highest results from delicate 
engravings, the printer often finds it necessary to do 
the presswork from electrotype plates, and if these are 
made by Benedict the fact that the printing is not done 
from the original is often indeterminable, because Benedict 
electrotype plates are of a quality seldom seen elsewhere. 
In the average electrotype foundry the work goes through 
a certain routine and takes its chances. If there is a rush 
of work the depositing is cut short, and the copper shell 
allowed to "go" thinner than it should be, in the expec- 
tation that the customer will not notice it. If the shell is 
curved atthe time of backing (and it usually is) the finisher 
may let it pass, giving the customer a plate hollowed in 
the center, or he may decide to hammer it out, and in so 
doing he commonly batters or enlarges the fine dots or 
any delicate shading, or broadens any sharp lines that are 
on the margins of the electro. 

In the Benedict electrotype none of these things can 
happen. The system provides that every plate shall have 
a shell of standard thickness, or if it is for a long run, a still 
greater thickness, and to prevent the up-curving of the 
outer edges in the finished plate, all fine work is under- 
laid in the centre before going to the moulding press, so 
that when the shell is made and backed it is either 
perfectly level or minutely lower on the outer edges. 
Electrotypes so made save half the time of the printer in 
make-ready and are the cheapest as well as the best. 

Others may give the printer good photo-engraving and 
electrotyping some of the time, but Benedict & Co., of 
175-177 Clark St., Chicago, give it to him all the time, 
and for this reason number among their customers firms 
in every State in the Union, as well as in Canada and 
Mexico. 



MACHINERY FOR ENGRAVERS. 

Some printers find that thev can, with advantage, 
operate an engraving plant as an adjunct to their printing- 
business proper. This is often the case with printers 
who make a specialty of high-class catalogues, brochures, 
etc., and who deem it best to have all branches of the 
work under their immediate supervision and control. 
Such plants sometimes fail to return a profit because the 
managers, while giving due weight to the artistic side, fail 
to comprehend the importance of the mechanical branch. 
Good machinery for mounting and blocking is as essential 
to the commercial success of an engraving plant as good 
artists and good cameras. Badly mounted plates or delay 
in turning them out, mean serious interruptions in the press- 
room, which are always costly. The printer can make no 
greater mistake than to try to run an engraving plant with 
inferior tools. With the latest standard machines, such 
as those made by the Royles, of Paterson, N. J., handled 
by a competent man, he may get along well enough and 
avoid leaks in the blocking department. It is important, 
too, to have machines that are thoroughly up-to-date. 
The mechanical devices used by engravers are much better 
made, and are of far more importance now than formerly. 
Manv things that used to be done by hand, are now per- 
formed by special machines which do the work better and 
quicker. The making of lines around the edges of half- 
tone plates illustrates this. The old practice was to make 
such lines either by ruling the negative or cutting the 
plate by hand with a graver. The Royles now have a 
machine that makes these lines in a wide variety of forms 
and arrangements at a nominal cost, and much sharper and 
neater than is practicable with hand work. It is such 
machines as these that go to make up a modern engraving 
plant, and unless the printer can make up his mind to use 
them, he will simply be behind his neighbors in equip- 
ment and his work will cost him more, and be less finished 
than theirs. 



USING ILLUSTRATIONS TO INCREASE PRINTERS' 
PROFITS. 

The printer who fails to take advantage of modern 
methods of picture-making to enhance his work is behind 
the times. The printer who tries to handle his own 
illustrating, to fuss with artists, and to serve as a middle- 
man between the men who draw and paint, and those 
who do the mechanical work of producing printing 
plates, makes for himself an endless and unprofitable 
amount of labor, with accompanying dissatisfaction and 
annoyance. The public of to-day expects illustrations, 
pictorial matter, colors, embossing, or something in addi- 
tion to the cold type, before it will be induced to pause 
and read. Therefore, the printer who seeks to build up 
his trade is obliged to foster the taste for pictorial effect in 
order to attract and hold custom. Every book, every 
magazine, every circular, every bit of printing that is 
advertising, demands a picture of some sort. The printed 
text appeals solely to the brain, but the illustration catches 
the eye, arrests the attention, and gives color to that 
which is otherwise flat and dry. 

But printing is one trade and illustrating another. 
The printer who seeks to effectively illustrate his work 
cannot do it by purchasing a few odd cuts and sandwiching 
them in; he must have good, effective illustrating, or lose 
trade to the printer who secures better. Frequently, 
when he recognizes that superior engraving and designing 
is wanted to satisfy a customer, he goes to the artist and 



Illustrations to increase printers' profits. 345 

has the drawings made according to their mutual notions 
of what is most appHcable to the work. When he takes 
these drawings to the photo-engraver he is apt to be told 
that they are executed in a wa}^ that is hard to reproduce 
for that particular work, under the existing conditions. 
Perhaps the artist has made a wash drawing, when line 
photo-engraving is the best adapted for the illustration ; 
or perhaps he has made a line drawing for a work on 
coated paper that should have halftones; or perhaps he 
has not worked up his shadows heavily enough to photo- 
graph well; or it may be one of a hundred other things that 
are always occurring when the artist and engraver do not 
work side by side with a mutual understanding. Then 
somebody has to pay an extra charge for making over the 
drawings so that they will suit the method of reproduction 
most desirable for the job. 

In these days- of illustrative excellence and unique 
pictorial effects, the above is a common experience with 
the printer who undertakes to handle his own illustrating. 
The loss and annoyance incident to such " misfit" illus- 
trating may be entirely avoided by the printer who 
decides at the outset that he is not an illustrator, nor a 
middleman between artists and engravers, but a printer, 
and, that he cannot do such work to advantage any more 
than he can make rollers or cast type profitably. By 
placing his illustrating entirely in the hands of F. A. 
Ringler Co., of 21-23 Barclay Street, and 26-28 Park 
Place, New York, he not only secures the very best and 
most satisfactory service obtainable, but actually saves in 
cost as compared with the uncertain methods that have been 
discussed. The Ringler Co. is the largest photo-engraving 
establishment and electrotype foundry in the world. 
They do designing, line photo-engraving, halftone work. 



34^ ILLUSTRATIONS TO INCREASE PRINTERS' PROFITS. 

Avax engraving, wood engraving, metal engraving, die 
sinking for embossed plates, and color plate engraving, 




Line Cut— For Newspaper Work 

Courtesy of F. A,. Ringler Co. 

in fact anything and everything that the printer requires 
in the shape of rehef printing plates. 

They employ constantly a large force of artists, ckilled 




Full-Shaded— For Medium-Grade Catalogue Work 

Courtesy of F. A. Ringler Co 

in various lines. Nearly all of them have specialties, 
which are at the service of the customer. Whatever the 
character of work desired, there is always an expert to 



ILLUSTRATIONS TO INCREASE PRINTERS PROFITS. 



!47 



perform it, and sometimes a drawing will pass through 
three or four hands in order to receive the best touches 
for that part of the work in which each artist excels. In 
this way an excellence is arrived at that no work from 
single artists can hope to equal. Some of the beautiful 
magazine covers made by this firm owe their perfection 
largely to the fact that the color scheme was laid out by 




Halftone — For High-Grade Catalogue Work 

Courtesy of F. A. Ringler Co. 

one expert, the figures drawn by another, the landscape 
by a third, and the lettering by a fourth. These artists 
do nothing on the hit or miss plan. Before pen or brush 
is touched, it has been thoroughly decided what process 
of reproduction is best adapted to the work in hand, and 
if the job is to be printed on coated paper or rough surf^iced 
stock, or a tinted paper, that fact is also taken into con- 
sideration. All the data being known, it is then concluded 
to do the illustrating in halftone, or zinc etching, or stip- 
pling, or by three-color process, and the artist has his key 
from the outset, and labors in harmony with the skilled 



348 ILLUSTRATIONS TO INCREASE PRINTERS' PROFITS. 

workers who will follow later in the more mechanical 
part of preparing the plate for printing. 

When it comes to the photo-engraving part of the 
work, we all know that there are plates and plates. The 
highest grade of excellence is attained only by the Ringler 
method of watching each detail, and performing it with 
judgment and skill. No craft connected with printing 
calls for more ability and careful training than does photo- 
engraving. In this establishment there has been trained 
a corps of men specially selected because of their natural 
gifts, and in many cases educated right under the eye of 
F. A. Ringler himself, whose name is synonymous with 
all that is best in illustrating, and whose progressive 
methods, and readiness to take hold of new processes has 
kept his plant in the position of the acknowledged head 
of the trade of reproducing illustrations by mechanical 
processes. Wherever the photograph fails in any partic- 
ular, the mechanical skill and knowledge of this corps of 
workmen is drawn upon to supply the deficiency. It 
may be in touching up the negative, or in judicious work 
upon the photograph, or in cutting out high lights in the 
tinal plate, or in a combination of all these delicate opera- 
tions. The best knowledge of how to improve the 
original is always there for use, and the printer who pat- 
ronizes F. A. Ringler Co. for the entire work of illustrating 
secures the entire benefit of such knowledge, and usually 
at an actual saving in expenditure, because there is no 
wasting of ammunition, no misdirecting of effort. Others 
make lower prices for specific portions of the work, but 
Ringler's price proves the lowest in the long run. Here 
as elsewhere, it is the best that is the cheapest. 

In giving work to one engraver, and then taking his 
plates to an electrotyper to be duplicated, the printer in- 



ILLUSTRATIONS TO INCREASE PRINTERS' PROFITS. 349 

curs to some extent the same sort of trouble that arises 
from trying to do a middleman's business with artist and 
photo-engraver. There are misunderstandings, and he is 
always the unfortunate between the upper and lower 
millstone. When the electrotypes do not print as satis- 
factorily as the engraver's proof, and he tries to get at the 
cause and remedy it, the photo-engraver says it is the 
fault of the electrotyper, and the electrotyper is very sure 
that it is the photo-engraver's fault, the result being no 
satisfaction and no redress. This sort of trouble is entirely 
avoided by the patrons of F. A. Ringler Co. They give 
their orders for electrotypes with the order for the original 
plates, and they get duplicates as good as can be made. 
The fine vignetting of an original is never found ham- 
mered down in the electrotype, as the shells always are 
made level in the first place or discarded. The tendency 
to hollow out, or be low in the centre and high on the 
edges, is entirely avoided in the best grades of work 
through a manipulation of the original plates that pro- 
duces a slightly reversed result, so that the edges of an 
electrotype that would naturally tend to print too sharply 
are perhaps a piece of newspaper lower than the solid 
body of the plate. By such refinements of excellence as 
this, a vast amount of time is saved the printer on his 
presses, when using Ringler plates. If blocked, they are 
sure to be properly squared, never causing any rising of 
leads or furniture. They require a minimum of make- 
ready, probably cutting this time in half as compared 
with the average plate. If they are color-plates, they in- 
variably register, which is more than can be said of some. 
The illustrations of halftone, line and full-shaded draw- 
ings that accompany this article serve to show the printer 
what he can have to set off his work from F. A. Ringler Co. 




Courtesy of Merganthaler Linotype Co. 

THE MERGANTHALER LINOTYPE- 
TO-DAY. 



-A MACHINE OF 



When it is stated that there are 7,500 linotype 
machines in use, and that each of these machines has an 
ordinary producing capacity of 30,000 to 50,000 ems in a 
day of eight hours, while many of them are run with two 
gangs or shifts of operators, it requires no special calculation 
to arrive at the result that this wonderful machine is doing 
more composition than was done on the entire globe 
fifteen years ago, when it made its first appearance. 

The linotype is not a machine of the future, but of the 
present; its records are matters of value to the printer 
now, and not expectations of what may profit him in 
years to come. The printer simply cannot afford to do 
without a machine that reduces his cost to so small a 



THE MERGANTHALER LINOTYPE. 35 I 

figure, and those printeries that have delayed investing; 
have only invited more active competitors to take their 
work and the profits. The keyboard of the linotype is 
operated at rates ranging from 7 cents per 1,000 ems irt 
small towns to 14 cents in large cities, as against 25 cents 
to 45 cents per 1,000 ems for hand labor, showing a sav- 
ing of more than two-thirds to the employer, while 
allowing the operator to earn a much greater wage. 

The vast saving accomplished by the linotype is dis- 
tinctively shown in the 13th annual (1898) report by- 
Carroll D. Wright, U. S. Commissioner of Labor. This 
report contains wholly impartial summaries of compari- 
sons made between hand labor and a great variety of 
labor-saving machines in various industries. In his ex- 
amination into the work of the linotype several observa- 
tions were made as to the time and cost of composing 
100,000 ems under different conditions. In one instance 
100,000 ems of 8-point, book work, were composed on 
the linotype machine in 17 hours and 20 minutes, while 
the same work done by hand occupied 148 hours, or 
about eight and a half times as long. The labor cost by 
machine was $4.40 and by hand $41.60 In another 
instance, where the work was on lo-point, objectionable 
matter, that is matter containing considerable italic, 
100,000 ems was set on the linotype in 22 hours, 28 
minutes, and the same by hand in 177 hours, or eight 
times as long by hand. In this latter case the labor cost 
was $5.69 by machine and $46 by hand. It should be 
noted here that these were not speed tests, nor tests 
made by parties interested to make a showing, but 
simply observations made by the agents of the United 
States Government on actual commercial work, per- 
formed in the ordinary course of business, and not laid 
out for any one's special convenience. They are results 
that can be had in any printery where careful and intelli- 
gent operators are employed under good management, 
well paid, and supplied with good copy and inspired to 
do good work. 



352 



THE MERGANTHALER LINOTYPE. 



The following table, showing averages in a few news- 
paper offices, might be extended indefinitely : 

Average Machine Records 

MAINTAINED IN VARIOUS OFFICES IN THE UNITED STATES. 



Offices 



Per day 



Baltimore, Md., News. 

New Haven, Conn., Journal and Courier. 

St. Joseph, Mo., News 

Springfield, Mass., Union 

Troy, N. Y., Times 

Denver, Col. , News 

St. Joseph, Mo., Herald 

Wilmington, Del., News 

■Cincinnati, Ohio, Times-Star 

Buffalo, N. Y., Times 

Montgomery, Ala., Advertiser 

Newark, N. ]., Advertiser 

Troy, N. Y., Press 

Houston, Tex., Post 

San Antonio, Tex., Express 

Los Angeles, Cal., Times 

Tacoma, Wash., Leader 

New Orleans, La., States 

Peoria, 111., 'Transcript 

Concord, N. H., People and Patriot. . . . 

Memphis, Tenn., Scimitar 

Philadelphia, Pa., Record ... 

Denver, Col., Republican 

New York Times 

Indianapolis, Ind., Journal 

Baltimore, Md., News 

Fort Smitli, Ark., News 

Washington, D. C, Star 

Cincinnati, Ohio, Commercial Gazette. . 

St. Louis, Mo., Chronicle 

Milwaukee, Wis., journal. 

St. Joseph, Mo., Gazette 

Chattanooga, Tenn., News 

St. Louis, Mo., Republic 

Detroit, Mich , Sun 

St. Paul, Minn., Pioneer Press 

Detroit, Mich. , Tribune . 

Grand Rapids, Mich., Herald 

Detroit, Mich., Free Press. ... 

New Bedford, Conn., Standard 

Springfield, Mass., Union 

New Haven, Conn., Register 

Washington, D. C, Post 

Rochester, N. Y., Post and Express 

Pittsburg, Pa., Leader 

Meriden, Conn., Republican 



35,000 



35,000 
32,000 
39,000 



36,000 
35,000 



32,000 
32,000 
40,000 
12,000 



3S,ooo 
40,000 



3 s, 000 
40,000 



40,000 



45,000 



40,000 



Per hour 



5,000 
4,000 
4,500 
4,500 



5,200 

4,750 



4,200 



4,400 

5,000 

4,soo 
4,000 



4,200 
5,000 

5,000 



4, 100 

4, '44 
4,0(^o 
4.800 



4,700 



4,200 

S,IOO 

4,500 



4,500 

4,200 
4, 100 
4,000 
4,800 
4,850 



THE MERGANTHALER LINOTYPE. 



J")-^ 



It is interesting here to note phenomenal records as 
indicating the possibilities of the machine. Ow June 28, 
1895, Mr. G. W. Green, of the Boston Standard, set in 
that office, from printed copy, 13, 130 ems of solid agate, 
\}% ems measure, in one hour, in the presence of reliable 
witnesses. The machine was driven at a moderate in- 
crease above normal speed. Mr. Green has a record of 
8,200 ems per hour for eight hours. 

In a public competition in Philadelphia, in the Times 
office, Oct. 3, 1899, W. H. Stubs set and corrected 66,617 
ems of nonpareil in six hours, while his competitor William 
Duffy set 55,026 ems corrected in the same time. It 
will be seen that the winner's average was slightly in 
excess of 1 1,000 per hour. 

But it is of more commercial interest to know what 
has been done under normal conditions, in a well- 
regulated linotype composing-room, and for this purpose 
a 2o-days' record of work in the office of the Detroit Free 
Press is subjoined. The matter was one-fifth leaded, 
contained no display heads, and was corrected by the 
operators : 

RECORD IN THOUSANDS OF EMS PER DAY. 



Days 


I 

53 
55 
64 
00 

54 
67 


2 

57 
62 

57 
48 

51 


3 

5Q 
01 

S5 
52 
54 
58 


4 

50 
50 

54 
52 

^^ 


5 

so 
5t» 
51 

S2 
58 
67 


6 

55 
63 
60 
58 
50 
52 


7 

ss 
5Q 
53 
54 
48 
58 


8 

53 
Oo 

5Q 

48 

54 
5t> 


9 

59 
5S 
61 
58 
56 

=57 


10 

Oo 
50 
54 
47 
51 
SI 


1 1 

59 
^3 
52 
07 
5^ 
7' 


12 

52 
60 

73 

S2 

53 


'3 

59 
Oo 
OS 

52 

55 
Oo 


14 

O4 

55 
47 
54 
50 

52 


IS 16 

57|53 
55,60 

58,59 
5456 
4750 
50,7' 


17 

58 
51 
56 

56 

53 

57 


18 
62 

53 


19 

57 
57 
61 

55 
55 
54 


20 


Rist 


58 
57 
78 
54 

^S 

58 


Wise 

Forney j ^^^i;^"^*^ 
Martin '( CouLd 
Salterbach . . . 
Young ...... 

Averages 



As compared with typesetting machines proper, that 
is machines that set and distribute ordinary typefounders' 
type, the linotype has several enormous advantages. 

It entirely does away with the labor of distribution. 



554 'TH^ MERGANTHALER LINOTYPE. 

It substitutes metal at 5 to 7 cents a pound for type 
at about 40 cents a pound. 

It never runs out of sorts. 

It gives a new and sharp face at every operation. 

It enables the printer to keep matter standing at a 
trifling cost. 

It is the only real " one-man " machine in existence. 

It handles a great variety of sizes and faces in one 
machine. 

In all other machines there is always required either 
more than one machine in the combination, or more than 
one operator, and usually both. Linotype results and 
records are produced by single operatives on single 
machines, and not by ''teams " at double the labor cost, 
as on typesetting machines. 

Linotype machines cost $3,000 each, or say $300 a 
year for interest and repairs. They are also leased at $500 
per year. Every machine is guaranteed as to workman- 
ship, material and capacity to produce 7,500 ems of solid, 
justified matter per hour. Before the machines were 
brought to their present high state of efficiency it was 
supposed that they were only fitted for newspaper work, 
and they have been put into use by nearly every large 
newspaper in the world and by hundreds of small 
papers. 

Within the past four or five years, as details have 
been added, and the variety of faces increased they are 
being taken into use by book and job printers, and lino- 
type work is now as fiimiliar in the pages of the best 
magazines and in books of leading publishers as is 
founders' type. For publications or books of 40,000 cir- 
culation or under, the presswork can be done direct from 
the linotype slugs, thus saving the cost of electrotyping, 
which would be necessary to save the wear on the type 
were the work done from foundry type. Where an 
edition is very large it is practicable to make electrotypes 
and sterotypes from the slugs the same as from type 
forms. 



THE MERGANTHALER LINOTYPE. 355 

The ordinary keyboard contains 90 characters, which 
are arranged in several different ways for different classes 
of work. 

In machines provided with two-letter matrices 180 
characters may be set from the same keyboard. These 
machines are often termed "Book Office Machines," 
because italic or black letter for headings, etc., is included 
in the extra characters thus obtained. For odd or peculiar 
characters, as on special work, special matrices may 
be had and kept in sort boxes for introduction to the 
line by hand, their distribution being automatically 
effected. 

The linotype matter may be rapidly leaded by hand. 
If all matter from the machine is to be leaded, the mould 
may be adjusted one size larger than the face, to produce 
a "shoulder" on the slugs. For example, a 6-point f^ice 
may be thus produced on a 7-point body, or a 7-point 
face on an 8-point body. 

The machines are used with entire success for mailing 
lists, lists of stockholders, poll lists and similar lists, 
which may be set cheaply, changed quickly, and left 
standing, putting out of use the mere cost of the metal. 

Linotype matter may be set in connection with cuts 
in the same manner as movable type. 

Papers having large numbers of small "ads "to set 
find that there is a great saving effected by the use of the 
machine, and a number of machines are used for this 
purpose alone, in some cases setting the first word or 
line in capitals, and in other cases with two-line initial 
LETTERS, which Can be speedily done with matrices set 
into the line by hand. 

The machine is specially advantageous for cata- 
logues, directories, etc., as the solid lines may be readily 
and safely handled. The cost of type and the need of 
sorts are avoided. 

The slugs are made of such height as to be used in 
connection with ordinary type. 

It should be understood that by changing the matrices 



)^t> THE MERGANTHALER LINOTYPE. 

and adjusting the mould, any machine produced by the 
Company can be adapted to produce any desired face on 
any desired body, the line not exceeding five inches in 
length. 

Owing to the facility with which new slugs may be 
cast and inserted, it has been found, by actual test, that 
linotype matter containing the same defects may be 
corrected much more rapidly than when set in ordinary 
type. In a test made by IVilliam H. Rand, of Rand & 
McNally, the well known publishers, linotype matter was 
corrected in twenty-seven minutes, while the same correc- 
tions in type occupied one and a half hours. 

All machines are now built on the interchangeable 
plan, so that any desired part or piece may be procured 
quickly and cheaply. 

The company will send an expert mechanic to erect 
the machines and set them in operation in the office of 
the user, charging expenses and wages. 

For every variety of work the linotype has proved the 
superiority of Merganthaler's plan of substituting the line 
as a unit in place of Gutenberg's movable type, and this 
has brought about a revolution in the printing business. 
The reason why the linotype system is adaptable to so 
many variations, and accommodates such a broad range 
of work, is found in the simple mechanical fact that a 
matrix may be mounted on a body large enough to be 
handled conveniently in a machine, while the individual 
types are very difficult to handle mechanically, owing to 
their small size and the extreme accuracy required of all 
parts of the machine and the softness of the metal. Take 
the matter of distribution, for instance, which is so simple 
on the linotype that the matrices simply slide into place 
for reuse. In the typesetting machines each type has to 
be accurately nicked and made to pass through wards 
whose accuracy is figured down to the thousandth of an 
inch. The distribution requires careful oversight, as the 
slightest batter or bit of dirt on a type tends to block the 
machine. The justification is wholly automatic on the 



THE MERGANTHALER LINOTYPE. 3^7 

Merganthaler linotype system, being effected by the action 
of simple wedges, while the typesetting machines have 
resorted to the most complicated and cumbrous devices 
in trying to get rid of the work of hand justification, and 
thus far without any commercial success. 

in order to run satisfactorily, typesetting machines 
require to be handled by two or three men at once, con- 
stituting a team, while the linotype, in offices where only 
one machine is used, is cared for entirely by the operative. 
In large plants it is found best to employ a machinist to 
keep the machines up to the highest efficiency, and save 
the time of the keyboard operatives, besides avoiding 
tinkering with the machines by printers who may not 
understand them. 

The printer should not allow himself to be misled by 
the persuasive talk of the promoters of ' ' coming machines. " 
These have been coming for the past twenty years, and 
the printers who waited for them have grown poor 
while the linotype users have grown rich. The linotype 
is the only machine that has come to stay. Those type- 
setting machines that were sold to some extent during the 
past fifteen years are no longer offered to the public, and 
second-hand ones go begging at one-tenth the cost of the 
linotype, while linotypes continue to be sold at the rate 
of about seventy-five machines a month. 

These are facts and not froth. The linotype system 
is the only system of mechanical composition that ever 
really saved the printer any money. It saves because, 
having overcome the complications and irregularities of 
the earlier machines, and being perfected in its details, the 
product is composition of real commercial every day 
value, obtained at a minimum cost. It has introduced 
new features and methods into the composing-room, and 
it has overcome all the prejudices and conservatism that 
at first hindered its introduction. It saves money, and 
saves it where the printer needs it most, in the composing- 
room, for that has been a sink hole of loss with most 
printeries. Now that so many book and job printers 



35^ REGARDING "CENTURY" PRESSES. 

are using the machines, they are not only getting all the 
composition there is going, but the presswork also, and 
the printer who defers putting in linotype machines finds 
out that his work is drifting away to those who do it by 
modern methods. 

The offices of the Merganthaler Linotype Co. are in 
the Tribune Building, New York City. The moral to 
the man who desires to know ''How to Make Money in 
the Printing Business " is obvious — buy linotypes. 



AN EXPERT OPINION REGARDING "CENTURY" 
PRESSES. 

I HAVE been asked as an expert mechanic and as a 
printer to give my opinion upon the "Century" press, 
and to define the precise position which this press occu- 
pies with respect to the modern requirements of printing. 

In a survey of the advance made during the past ten 
years in printing presses for the better class of work, 
two impovements stand out as distinct strides in the con- 
struction of machinery. One, the invention of a device to 
secure a continuous gearing of the bed with the cylinder in 
a two-revolution press, I believe to be the most valuable 
contribution that the printer has received from the inventor 
in the past decade. By reason of this device wherever used 
the average of quality in the work produced has moved for- 
ward at a bound. Not only has the gain been in securing an 
exact registration, which was theretofore impossible, but in 
ridding printing forms of the wiping action which they 
must suffer from a cylinder which is not rigidly geared up 
with the bed upon which they are borne. 



}bO REGARDING "CENTURY" PRESSES. 

In this latter connection, I have recently seen the last 
impressions of a run of 'j ^0,000 from one set of plates, and 
when compared with the first impressions hardly a trace 
of wear was discernible. Had 1 not known that the 
machine upon which the plates were used was built with 
continuous register gearing 1 could not have believed such 
a result possible, for 1 have never before seen plates of the 
same character stand up for more than 200,000 impressions. 

In the particular machine in point (a ''Century" press 
with a bed 39x53 inches), each side of the bed was geared 
to its corresponding end of the cylinder, a fact which 1 
observed made a complete squaring between the bed and 
cylinder. Whether it was due to this, or to the easy 
swing of the new reciprocating device used, 1 do not 
know, but the bed travelled in such a swift and quiet man- 
ner that my hand upon the frame could scarcely detect the 
moment of reverse. 

The other point, and the second of the two which 1 
consider the principal improvements made in presses 
within recent years, relates to the new method of obtain- 
ing and maintaining a powerful and absolutely precise de- 
gree of impression, which, also, Mr. Wood has contrived 
and embodied, with his continuous register gearing, in the 
"Century" Press. Mr. Wood's arrangement consists in 
first putting down a center stay, beneath the bed, which 
is several times stiffer than any heretofore used, and in 
bringing about the uprights which support the cylinder 
the principal mass of the side frames. He constructs the 
cylinder upon a new plan of internal webbing and with 
cylinder journals whose strength is approximately 30 per 
cent, greater than that employed in any other method of 
press construction. Having secured the highest degree of 
rigidity in the various parts an ingenious arrangement of 



REGARDING "CENTURY" PRESSES. 36 1 

eccentric raising-and-lowering mechanism controls the 
cylinder journals, by reason of which, at each impression, 
the cylinder may be brought to a positive point, which 
is not open to variance, where it will remain throughout 
the varying strains incident to the working of a mixed 
form of type without yielding its position even to the 
thickness of a tissue; thus the usual difficulty experienced 
with two-revolution presses, which arises from the cylin- 
der not coming down with exactness to the same position 
for successive impressions, is entirely eliminated, and a 
fixedness and certainty of impress is secured instead. 

And further than this has Mr. Wood gone in his 
novel conception that the proper normal position for a 
cylinder journal is against the top of its bearing and 
not against the bottom as is the case in all other ma- 
chines. In this he is certainly right, for whenever, as in 
other machines, a cylinder is called upon to impress 
the type beneath it, it must first be lifted in its bearings 
until its journals bear against their upper sides before a 
pressure of more than the weight of the cylinder can be 
brought to bear in the act of printing. Thus it is nec- 
essary for each row of pages as it passes beneath the cyl- 
inder to lift the cylinder until all the lost motion in the 
upper part of its bearings is taken up, which is a decided 
mechanical fault that not only is injurious to the front 
edge of the pages which must do the lifting, but also to 
the back edge of the pages as well from off which the 
cylinder rolls as it drops in the margin behind. By Mr. 
Wood's arrangement the cylinder, contrary to all other 
practice, is so supported that the journals are always 
against the upper part of their bearings; so, there being 
no lost motion above the cylinder journals, the pages are 
not called upon to lift the cylinder, for the lifting has 



3^2 MAKING A PROFIT ON SMALL WORK. 

already been mechanically accomplished, and thus is 
overcome the usual tendency of the cylinder to drop in the 
margins — a fault that causes more damage to plates and 
type than perhaps any other that may be attributed to a 
printing machine. 

In many other ways the "Century " press represents 
the highest development that press-building has yet 
iittained, but in this paper I have endeavored to illustrate 
only what 1 consider to be the chief additions that the past 
decade has brought to the two-revolution press, and will 
leave the rest to a future paper with the closing remark 
that with respect to other problems as well Mr. Wood 
has shown himself to be the most virile inventor that has 
worked for the printing industry in the present genera- 
tion, and any machine that bears the stamp of his genius 
may be accepted as the very best that can be devised. 

{Signed) Chas. H. Cochrane. 



MAKING A PROFIT ON SMALL WORK. 

Probably every job printer at one time or another has 
been astonished at the low figure some competitor has 
made on an order of envelopes, cards, circulars, etc., and 
has regarded such competitor as a reckless price-cutter, 
or as having made a mistake in figuring. The conclusion 
should not be reached too hastily, for it may be only a 
case of having improved machinery, which reduces cost 
to such a degree that the happy possessor of the machine 
is making a good thing at prices that would ruin a user 
of older styles of presses. Take for instance an order of 



MAKING A PROFIT ON SMALL WORK. 365 

100,000 No. 6 envelopes. A has Gordon presses, run by 
power, with cheap boy labor to do the feeding. He 
figures that he can do the 100,000 in ten days on an 
eighth medium, and that the time of the boy and press 
will yield him a close profit at $50, so he makes his 
estimate on that basis. B has a pony cylinder, and 
figures that he can put on a duplicate form with a feeder 
at each side of the cylinder, and by speeding up the ma- 
chine, can put the job through, in three days' time at a 
cost, including all charges, of $30 for the presswork. 
C has a Harris automatic press that feeds itself, and will 
turn out the entire job in one day of nine hours, at a shop 
cost of only $6, and involve $5 less waste of stock 
on the job. What wonder then, that A should look 
with horror upon Bs price, and that B should view with 
equal horror the estimate of C, who has perhaps charged 
$25 for the presswork, and taken the job, making more 
than B could have made had he charged $45 for the 
presswork, or A had he charged $70. Yet, C should 
not be criticised for cutting prices. He has simply shown 
that he is an up-to-date man, who has abandoned 
old methods in favor of the new. 

Or, suppose that it is a job of circulars, 6x9 inches, 
also 100,000 impressions. A with his Gordons can 
make no better price than on the envelopes, and must 
charge at least $50 for the presswork to clear himself on 
the job. B makes a price this way: 

Eight electrotype plates at 80 cents, . $6 40 

12,500 impressions on a cylinder at $1, . 12 50 

Make-ready, . . . i 50 

Spoilage of paper, .... i 00 

Total . . $21 40 

C simply makes two electros for his Harris au- 
tomatic press, and runs the job off with a hand feeder 
in two days, making his price this way: 

Two curved electros at $ I each, . . . $2 00 
Make-ready and two days' time of press, . 12 00 

Total . . . $14 00 



364 MAKING A PROFIT ON SMALL WORK. 

Again it is more than plain that C can take the job 
away from either A or B, and yet make a great deal 
more money on it. 

Suppose another case of a lot of small jobs to be done : 
Call it four lots of envelopes of 1,000, 2,000, 2, 500 and 
4,000 respectively; one 5,000 run of billheads; one 
20,000 run of cards; one 15,000 run of tags; and 2,000 
circulars. The time on a Gordon would be fully 14 hours 
for the envelopes; 7 hours for the billheads; 8 hours for the 
cards (four on) ; 18 hours for the tags, and 3 hours for the cir- 
culars, a total of 50 hours, at a cost of $25 for the press- 
work. A Harris press would do the four lots of envelopes 
in two hours, the actual running time being less than an 
hour ; an hour and a half would perhaps be taken for the bill- 
heads, by hand feed; two and a half hours for the 20,000 
cards, with automatic feed; two hours for the tags, and 
half an hour for the circulars, a total of eight and a half 
hours, or call it a day, at a cost of $6, which cost is but 
25 percent, of what it would be on the Gordons. 

As the Harris press takes a quarter sheet of 22>^ X28}4 
inches card or tag board and prints the same at the rate 
of 10,000 or 12,000 impressions per hour, cylinder 
presses running a full sheet '' four on," would have to be 
credited with the three extra plates, imposition and make- 
ready at no cost whatever, and be run at a maintained 
speed of 3,400 per hour to equal the economy of the 
Harris. 

Where there are numerous changes of forms to be made 
on a job, the Harris automatic press gives as much advan- 
tage over other machines as it does in the cases of the 
long and short runs noted. A record of 50,000 impres- 
sions per day has been made where the work included 
250 changes of the form. In such work the man with the 
Gordon or the pony cylinder is again distanced. 

Not only does the Harris press with the automatic feed 
admit of a speed ten or twelve times as great as that of a 
platen jobber, but it reduces the waste of stock ninety per 
cent., and permits make-ready in about half the time. 



MAKING A PROFIT ON SMALL WORK. 365 

The press is made in two sizes, 12x12 and 15x18 inches, 
and being adapted to use either curved electros or stereos, 
or type boxes, or a combination of type and plates, it 
becomes practical for a great variety of work. For en- 
velopes and cards it has an automatic feed, and may be 
run at from 10,000 to 15,000 impressions an hour. Paper 
has to be hand fed, and then the speed is from 3,000 to 
5,000 an hour, according to the ability of the feeder. The 
reason why a hand feeder can supply the sheets at such 
speeds is that the stock has to be moved only a few 
inches, that the front register is automatic, and because 
no offset or damage can result when he misses a sheet. 

The speed with which make-ready is done is owing 
partly to the accessibility ot the tympan cylinder, but more 
to the fact that in printing from a small cylindrical surface 
only a line at a time touches the paper, requiring such a 
trifling pressure that no make-ready is required to take up 
the spring of the metal parts of the machine, as in a platen 
press. The plates are also clamped in such a way that 
underlaying can be done very expeditiously. No diffi- 
culty is experienced in securing curved electrotype and 
stereotype plates for the Harris press, as an inexpensive 
stereotyping apparatus can be supplied to users in coun- 
try places, and in the cities any electrotyper can supply 
curved electros by the use of a bender supplied by the 
makers of the Harris press. 

The Harris automatic press costs less to buy than a 
cylinder press and occupies much less floor space. It 
will turn out twice as much work as can be had from a 
number of Gordons involving the same price of purchase, 
audit can be run by one man. It does not feed paper from 
the web, but feeds envelopes and cards automatically from 
the bottom of the pile, so that more can be laid on with- 
out stopping the machine. When running at a 14,000 
an hour speed, the attendant is kept busy supplying piles 
of stock and taking away the printed work and packing 
it. In fact, the machine turns out work so fast that the 
only complaint of users is that they cannot get enough 



}66 THE GOLDING JOBBER. 

work to keep it busy. But the press will pay for itself 
over and over even when there is not work to keep it 
going half the time. 

Nothing will build up the work of an office faster 
than the introduction of such a machine. In a little while 
merchants learn that in that office they can get small work 
in great quantity in a very short time, and that the quality 
of the printing is uniformly good, and the count full. 
These are advantages enough, and it is not necessary for 
the owner of a Harris automatic press to shave prices 
materially to get work for it. The profits made by the 
efficiency of the machine are rightly his for his enterprise 
in being prompt to purchase a labor-saving machine. 



THE GOLDING JOBBER— A^£ PLUS ULTRA. 

Every printer ought to know whether there is one job 
press better than others — one that will save him or earn him 
$50 or $100 more than some other press in a given time — 
but unfortunately for the craft thousands upon thousands 
are still using job presses that are cheap or slow, because 
they have never taken the pains to investigate carefully 
and learn what can be proven to a mathemathical cer- 
tainty, that the Golding Jobber is in a marked degree the 
best and also the quickest operating of any in the world. 

The long rov/ of Golding presses that may be seen in 
the Lotus Press, New York, is an evidence of the esteem 
in which they are held in that printery, and scores of 
other offices might be named where only Golding job 
presses are used or would be installed. It will pay any 
printer to throw out all his jobbers of the Gordon type 
and to get rid of all those of the cylinder-distribution 
type, and to buy Golding Jobbers in their places, because 



THE GOLDING JOBBER. 



367 



he can get 2,000 to 3,000 more impressions per day from 
the latter, as shown by actual experience. Just think 
what this means: 2,000 impressions at the minimum cost 




The Golding Jobber 



Courtesy of Golding & Co. 



of 50 cents per 1,000 is $1.00 a day greater possibility, or 
a product that may be $300 better in a year than on in- 
ferior machines. The Golding can be run faster than any 
other press ever built, and will stand thirty to fifty per 



368 THE GOLDING JOBBER. 

cent, more speed without deterioration, because of these 
absolute mechanical advantages: 

I. — The main frame is all oi one single casting 
and not made up of parts bolted together. In 
other presses the bearings get out of line, the cor- 
ners of the press settling with the unevenness of 
the floor. 

2. — The quick return of the platen allows a 
quarter to a third more time for feeding the sheet 
than on any other press. 

These two features alone make the Golding press in- 
valuable as compared with others. It will stand being 
run faster, and the feeder has the time to do faster work. 
We have letters by the hundred showing that printers 
run Goldings day in and day out at 2,000 to 3,000 im- 
pressions an hour. Do you get any such results from 
your Gordons ? 

As compared with the cylinder-distribution type of 
job presses, which are admittedly slow, but do work su- 
perior to the Gordon, the Golding can demonstrate that 
it is as strong as the strongest, and that it gives better ink 
distribution — mind you, not "as good," but better — than 
any of them, and at twice the speed. The average 
printer knows that the Gordon style of job press is 
designed to be simple, cheap and quick, and that the cyl- 
inder-distribution press was designed to give the quality 
of printing of a rack-and-screw-distribution cylinder press, 
at a sacrifice of the Gordon's speed. The Golding press 
was especially designed to give both speed and quality, 
and it gives more of both than the other machines, besides 
having numerous minor conveniences all its own. Ink 
distribution is maintained at little friction by retaining the 
ink disk. The quality of this distribution is kept up to 



THE GOLDING JOBBER. 369 

the high standard required for the best modern printing, 
by a peculiar fountain, having a cylinder of large diameter 
on which the ink is spread finely and then transferred in 
a distributed condition to the disk. This gives excellent 
results, but the story is only half told, for the Golding 
has another ink distributing surface below the type bed. 
The form rollers run on to this on the down stroke, and 
receive a new coating of ink, so that when they return 
across the form there is almost the result of double 
rolling. 

We have only outlined the larger advantages and 
improvements in the Golding Jobber; but the presses are 
full of good points unknown to other machines. The 
platen is so hinged, and so pulled up against the bed and 
squeezed, that there is no chance or possibility of slip or 
slur, no matter whether the form is in or out of center. 

In the average printing office where Gordons are run 
the boys usually waste half an hour a day per machine 
fiddling with the impression screws, or if they do not it 
is because there is a rule enforced that they must leave 
them alone and depend on the bearers to balance the im- 
pression. These bearers take up room in the chase and 
reduce the capacity of a half medium to a quarto, or a 
quarto to an eighth. On the Golding the whole nuisance 
is avoided. There are no impression screws, but slides 
under the platen like those of a Hempel quoin, and a little 
finger-screw at one side sets the whole platen in or 
out with a twist or two, in such a way that it cannot get 
out of square. 

The chase of a Golding may be filled full of the heaviest 
sort of matter and the whole of the form will be properly 
inked and bear a proper impression; further, a single 
line may be worked at the bottom of the chase without 



370 THE GOLDING JOBBER. 

slurring. Under all conditions the Golding disk distribu- 
tion press is the least destructive of rollers. With 
several rollers running constantly and three others 
intermittently, upon a cylinder, heat is produced by 
friction in proportion to the stiffness of ink used, and to 
speed. The greater the heat, the sooner the rollers lose 
their surface or become melted. A disk press presents no 
such obstacle. The disk distribution press, as typified by 
the Golding Jobber, affords facilities for the regulation of 
the ink supply by the operator standing at the front of the 
press. This cannot be done on a press with cylindrical 
distribution. 

The printer who realizes that he is not making what 
he should from his job pressroom is invited to write at 
once to Golding & Co., 177-199 Fort Hill Square, Boston, 
or to the branch offices in New York, Philadelphia and 
Chicago, and learn the terms on which he can apply a 
remedy that will increase his output 20 per cent. 

Golding & Co. also build two " Art jobbers," and a 
light job press called the "Pearl," Fairhaven cylinder 
presses, paper cutters, chases and small tools generally 
for the printery, besides furniture of all descriptions. 
They furnish complete outfits for the printer and are 
always glad to make up estimates. They have earned 
an enviable reputation for carrying good goods and deal- 
ing fairly with everybody. 



WHY NOT MAKE MONEY BY BUYING A PRESS 
THAT WILL LAST A LIFETIME ? 

The Whitlock presses are the greatest money-makers 
ever placed in a printing office, and one reason for this is 
that they will outwear anything else in a printing plant. 
When purchasing a press the printer requires to disregard 
all "pretty" talk and assertion, and to get down to the 
bald iron and steel that he is buying. He wants the best 
combination of these, and he wastes his money if he buys 
any other. 

In considering the Whitlock press we can afford to 
discuss the mechanical details, because we know we have 
the best construction, and that we can prove it to the 
printer who will give close attention. 

A human crank is not always a good thing, but in 
machinery the crank is an ideal motion. In steam engines, 
locomotives, and other high-speed machines nothing was 
ever found so good as the simple crankfor converting recip- 
rocal (that is back-and-forth) motion into rotary motion. 
In a printing press, manufacturers have to contend with 
much the same problem as in the steam engine, because 
the motion of the cylinder is rotary and of the bed recip- 
rocal, and these must work together in unison. All 
cylinder press builders would undoubtedly use a simple 
crank motion for the bed, as in the steam engine, if they 
were not prevented by the fact that this requires an un- 
even speed of the cylinder, and that means a slow press. 
So they have to resort to compromises, and hence the 
numerous bed-motions of cylinder presses. 



372 



THE WHITLOCK PRESS. 




Whitlock Bed Motion. 



It is because the Whitlock has the most simple, dur- 
able and accurate of these substitutes for the crank that it 
is the most durable and reliable of the two-revolution 

presses on the 
market. The 
bed-motion as 
here illustrated 
is virtually the 
crank move- 
ment of the 
stop cylinder modified by elliptical gears, which adapt it 
to high speeds. It will be remembered that in its time 
the stop cylinder was the press of all presses for fine work 
and sure register, and that its only fault was its slowness. 
Now that the Whitlock has so modified and improved 
the bed-motion of the stop cylinder that it can be used on 
a two-revolution high speed press, there simply remains 
nothing more to be desired in this direction — the ne 
plus ultra is reached. 

Other presses may run fast, may give good register, 
good inking, etc., but as sure as iron is iron no one of them 
will continue to give these good results for many years 
without rebuilding, because of the trappy, complicated 
bed motions, whereas in the Whitlock we have a motion 
so fundamentally simple that it can be run indefinitely 
like the crank of the steam engine, and will work satis- 
factorily after years and years of hard wear. 

Because of this sure and simple bed-movement the 
Whitlock presses do not lose ability to register accurately, 
and the jars of reversal are absorbed in the heavy parts of 
the machine, and do not tend to rattle it to pieces. The 
Whitlock presses will stand more over-speeding and hard 
usage than any other two-revolution presses built. 



THE WHITLOCK PRESS. ^'J^ 

They are made to stand abuse, and no master printer can 
tell when he buys a press how much abuse it will be sub- 
jected to by his workmen. 

The tipping ink fountain of the Whitlock being more 
adjustable than any other made, it is not necessary to fill 
the fountain for short runs of special inks, as it will use 
up the ink to the last half pound without allowing the 
sheets to run light in color. This saves time in pushing 
down ink, and waste of stock as \v 3II as ink, and is not 
to be found on any competing machine. The ductor roll 
deposits the ink on the first vibrator, instead of on the table, 
so that the ink reaches the plate in a distributed condition. 

The roller construction h strictly up-to-date, all angle 
rollers being gear-driven, and rollers being interchange- 
able, so that worn form rollers may be used as 
distributors. 

The impression is very rigid and even. Four full- 
length and very wide steel-faced tracks, supported by 
very heavy arched girders, and supplied with many more 
than the usual number of steel friction rollers (which run 
free and uncontrolled like a ball-bearing) support the bed. 
The cylinder and type-bed are cast heavier and are sup- 
ported by stronger arms, journals, etc., than is usual on 
other makes of presses, and to spring either bed or cyl- 
inder is impossible. The box-like construction of the bed 
is new and patented, and insures double the stiffness of 
the ordinary construction. Instead of being made of open 
ribbed work on the under side, the lower portion is all 
closed in with solid metal, the weight being lightened by 
box-like cavities, opening at the sides. Thus a result is 
obtained that makes the bed practically as strong against 
springing as if it were of solid metal throughout the 
thickness. 



374 



THE WHITLOCK PRESS. 




Both impression trip and back-up are supplied, a 
combination not found in some other presses claimed to 
be first-class. The air-springs are connected, so that a 
single adjustment at either end of press 'sets both springs 
at once, saving time and insuring the proper resistance in 
reversing the bed. 

The cylinder of the Whitlock is 15 to 20 per cent, 
larger than on competing machines, thus reducing the 

wear on plates and 
type. Notwith- 
standing the larger 
cylinder and greater 
curve for reversal 
of the bed, the 
Whitlock^ is posi- 
tively a shorter, 
Whitlock Press. narrower and lower 

machine] for size] of form, than any other make in the 
market, owing to simplicity of design and structure. 
This means less floor space, less power, less shock in 
reversing the bed, and consequent greater speed and 
durability, besides some economy in time in working 
around a smaller machine. 

Flyless and tapeless " printed-side-up " front delivery 
is supplied in place of the fly when desired. The press 
is also fitted with all the latest conveniences in the way 
of handling rollers, adjusting tympan, etc. There is no 
desirable feature on any other two-revolution press that 
is not found as good or better on the Whitlock machine, 
and it has many little devices — time-saving devices — not 
found on any other press. 

In the Whitlock shops is a machine especially designed 
for testing each press made for exactness of register and 



THE WHITLOCK PRESS. 375 

positive absence of slur. This machine they control, and 
no other manufacturer has the means of applying any 
such careful tests. When you buy a Whitlock you 
know the machine will be in perfect running order the 
moment it is put together on your floor. How many 
printers have suffered losses from the presses that had to 
be tinkered with for weeks or months after starting before 
they were in correct working condition.^ 

Write for descriptive catalogue. 

Manufactured by the Whitlock Printing Press Manufac- 
turing Company. Sales offices — New York, 121 Times 
Building; Boston, 10 Mason Building; Chicago, 706 
Fisher Building; Works, Derby, Conn. 

Southern Agents, J. H. Schroeter& Bro., Atlanta, Ga. 

European Agents, T. W. & C. B. Sheridan, 46 Farring- 
don Street, London, Eng. 



^ntommon ^uptt^ for 



e^j^g^j^^j^s^^^d^.^g^?^^^^^^^, 




* to what straits old Time reduces * 

\- Frail man, when P A P E R — even a R a g like this, ^ 

>. Survives himself, his tomb and all that's his — Don 'Juan. 

I Old Stratford Cotton Rag Deckle, American and 

Foreign Hand-made, Japan, Plate, St. James Antique '' 

'• Rag, St. George English Finish Vellum Deckle, Dres- \ 

^ DEN Half-tone, Porcelaine Art Enamel, Rag Covers, { 

^ Opaque Bible, and Other Uncommon Papers. ^^^^^ i 

; IV. ^'. JipsrvoT{rHr\ 

\ At the Sign of T^he Wasp Number ] 

^^ Seventy Y \ ^ i: \i Avenue |5^tD gOVfi i 
) Telephone Number 2219 Righte enth Street k 



T^ DUPLEX 

PERFECTING NEWSPAPER PRESS 




SPEED WITHOUT STEREOTYPING 

SIX THOUSAND 4, 6 OR 8 - PAGE 
PAPERS PER HOUR PRINTED, PASTED 
AND FOLDED FROM FLAT FORMS 



Nearly 200 of these Presses y.^^ "ow in 

-' daily operation 

throughout the United States, from Maine to Texas, and from Florida 
to Oregon; also in England, France, Belgium, Australia, Holland, 
South Africa, Ontario, Quebec, Manitoba, New Brunswick and 
Newfoundland. 

THE DEMAND FOR THIS MACHINE IS CON- 
STANTLY GROWING, AND TAXES TO THE 
UTMOST OUR FACILITIES FOR MEETING IT 



ADDRESS 

Duplex Printing Press Co 

BATTLE CREEK, MICH. 



One Hundred Per 
Cent Per Year! 



Next to the paper, the most 
expensive item in the cost 
of producing printed matter 
is labor. You spend a great 
deal of time and money in 
trying to save a very small 
percentage on your stock, 
and sometimes get an infer= 
ior quality by so doing. Do 
you realize that on your 
composition you can save 
fifteen to fifty per cent by 
making an investment of a 
ridiculously small amount? 

50 to 100 per 
cent p er year 

is the very least it will net 
you. Strange as it seems, 
while it costs you less to 
produce it, your work will be 
greatly improved in appear= 
ance and will suit your cus= 
tomer better. If you are not 
yet informed about Standard 
Line Unit Set type— the most 
important advance in type= 
founding ofthecentury — 

Write for further particulars to 

Inland Type Foundry 

217 = 219 Pine St., Saint Louis 



^ RUBER 




CRANK MOVEMENT 
TWO REVOLUTION PRESS 

The most perfect modern printing machine of the age. 

Showing the highest rates of speed, without vibration. 

Combining the greatest strength with the least wear 
and tear. 

The largest number of conveniences, producing equiva- 
lent economies. 

The finest in mechanical excellence and superb con- 
struction. 

THE GREATEST MONEY MAKER OF THEM ALL 

VAN ALLENS & BOUGHTON 

SOLE SELLING AGENTS 

59 Ann St. NEW YORK 17-23 Rose St. 



H. W. THORNTON 
277 Dearborn Street, Chicago 

HADWEN SWAIN M'F'G. CO. 
215 Spear Street, San Francisco 



MILLER & RICHARD 
7 Jordan Street, Toronto, Ont. 

P. LAWRENCE 
57 Shoe Lane, London, E. C. 



J. E* LINDE 2Uto222 

William St. 

PAPER CO. "- ^ * 

MANUFACTURERS AND 
WHOLESALE DEALERS 

Super Calendered and Machine Finished 

Book^ News^ Poster 
and Blotting Papers 

Flat and Ruled Writings, Linens, Bonds and Ledgers, 
Cards and Cardboards, Envelopes, Pads, etc. 

In our Wrapping Paper Department 

We carry a large line of 

No* i and No* 2 Manila Wrapping in the roll, flat and 
folded ; Fibre, Express, Drug and Mottled Wrappers 
in the roll and folded 

Large line of 

IMPORTED JAPANESE NAPKINS 



PLEDGED 

TO THE PRINTER 
AND PLATEMAKER 



YPOTHETAE AND PLATE- 
MAKER prints more ori§:inal 
matter every month — matter 
m^^^KL'^^^ prepared especially and exclu- 
^Mp^«^ sively for its columns by suc- 

^H^ - ^lily cessful men in the business — 

'"^P :l^ than any other printings trades' 

journal* 

It does not hire as much 

matter written, of the cut-and- 

dried order, nor copy as much 

that has been uttered at one 

time or another, but it has, 

for a longfer time, printed the best thougfhts and trade 

experiences of the best men, prepared expressly for its 

columns. 

TYPOTHETAE AND PLATEMAKER is 
picdgfed to promote the business well-being of printers and 
platemakers* 

It is an animated, interesting, instructive and profit- 
able journal. 

FOLLOW ITS TEACHINGS AND YOU WILL 
MAKE MONEY IN THE PRINTING BUSINESS 



READ IT. LOOK AT ITS TYPOGRAPHY 

SUBSCRIBE FOR IT. ADVERTISE IN IT 



Typothetae AND Platemaker 

417 PINE STREET, ST. LOUIS 




HENRY 

LINDENMEYR 

& SONS 



PAPER 

WAREHOUSE 



ALL KINDS OF PAPER MADE TO ORDER 



NOS. 32, 34 AND 36 BLEECKER STREET 

BRANCH WAREHOUSE, 20 BEEKMAN STREET 

NEW YORK 



Jan - 8 1901 



JUN 16 1900 



1 



